D-E recently hosted a daylong civics workshop for a cohort of D-E students and high school students from across the Tri-State area. The day offered a continuation of last month’s Day of Deliberative Dialogue in the Upper School, facilitated by our Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging in partnership with the Washington, D.C.-based Close Up Foundation. Students from Montclair Kimberley Academy, The IDEAL School of Manhattan, The Browning School, and School of the Holy Child in Rye, New York, participated in community deliberation on the right to protest on high school campuses. In the afternoon, they gathered in small groups to consider national policy proposals surrounding the central question of how, if at all, the government should reform immigration policy. The day concluded with a panel of experts from different political perspectives, who answered questions that students formed during their deliberations. According to Scot Wilson, Close Up’s VP of Academics, the goal is to “focus on deliberative dialogue as a skill that is fundamental to the Democratic process… and deepen our understanding of the challenges of making good decisions.” And that fits right in with our school’s mission, noted Dr. Ingram, Director of DEIB. Specifically, he said, workshops such as these “support the culture of deliberative engagement we’re trying to create here at D-E.” More to come!

D-E’s Upper School Student Committee on Artificial Intelligence (SCAI) is hard at work researching the effects of AI on metacognition (that is, a person’s thought processes).This student group was founded last year and is advised by Chief Innovation Officer Ms. Gross and Mr. Lucci, US World Language Teacher, with the goal of being a resource for the School regarding AI guidelines and understanding AI’s role in the classroom. SCAI meets in subcommittees during Activities Period to take real-world data to make real-life connections. Kudos to this student committee for leading the charge when it comes to helping to develop AI policy—and stay tuned for future findings and SCAI events!  

This week’s Lower School (LS) Assembly “centered on commitment and the strength of neurodiverse and differently-abled communities—a meaningful moment for all of us,” said LS Assistant Principal Madeleine Lopez. In celebrating D-E’s core value of Commitment, students were introduced to the idea of setting a goal and working toward it, even when it’s hard. Fifth grade “helpers” pointed to the dedication it takes to put out the Bulldog Broadcast videos and for the LS Chorus members to prepare for all-school assemblies and concert performances. The speakers then segued into the “Community Connections” segment, during which they discussed neurodiversity and noted famous authors (Dav Pilkey, Rick Riordan), artists (Billie Eilish, Daniel Radcliffe), and athletes (Simone Biles) who are neurodivergent. Several students also courageously stood up to share their experiences with neurodivergence and people with different abilities. We applaud our LS friends for being such respectful and thoughtful members of our community of learners!