Student leaders and sixth-formers, dressed in yellow T-shirts, aid new students in registration.
Memorial House prefects are ready to welcome new students during Opening Days.
Over the summer, Associate Dean of Students and Director of Residential Life Mr. Pat Dennehy implemented a few important changes within the Choate Leadership Institute (CLI), a program designed to train student leaders to become better serve the community in their roles.
For the first time, six leadership groups arrived on campus at the same time. “This was an intentional shift to provide one leadership training program for most of our student leadership groups, which included team captains, prefects, International and Pathways Mentors, Judicial Committee committee members, and Student Council members,” Mr. Dennehy said.
Student leaders moved in more than a week before classes started for sufficient time to immerse themselves in their leadership roles. “There is a lot of responsibility that comes with leadership, and so the goal of the program is to help prepare students for situations they may confront while here but also realize the benefits and joy that comes from leading,” Mr. Dennehy said. “The hope is that our student leaders can find ways to empower others and support community members in the best way they can but also understand that leadership is a muscle that needs to be constantly cared for and developed.”
At the opening dinner on August 29, Mr. Dennehy announced that the theme for CLI this year was “one rung at a time.” Student leaders received an insulated tumbler with the phrase as a reminder to take leadership responsibilities one day at a time by supporting each other while maintaining personal boundaries.
Caroline Kim ’25, an International Student Mentor who participated in the CLI, said, “I think it brought together all the different leaders that have critical roles in the Choate community, and it really made everybody feel like we were all working towards a common goal.”
Before this year, CLI was only for prefects, and other leadership groups had training sessions separately during orientation week and throughout the school year.
However, following this year’s amendments, all student leaders attended both general and position-specific orientation programs that served to prepare them for their year of mentorship ahead. Dean of Equity and Inclusion Dr. Rachel Myers said, “The reason why all leadership groups came together for CLI was to signal, definitively, that all leadership positions are equally important.”
The remodeled program also gave student leaders more extensive training. Ms. Ashley Sinclair, the faculty adviser to the International Student Mentors, said, “In addition to the all-student training, we were also able to have more in-depth training on issues that past international students had requested, such as domestic diversity.”
While Student Council didn’t have designated meeting times before classes began in previous years, the group had a head start with revising their constitution, exploring new initiatives, and setting goals for themselves at CLI this year. “I really enjoyed the extra time to communicate with everyone,“ Student Body President and four-year Student Council member Amanda Benneh ’24 said. “Now, we’re able to delve deeper into what we wanted to do without the time crunch.”
However, Kim said she wished CLI wasn’t as long. “I know scheduling can be hard, but as a whole, the program didn’t need to be as early or as long as it was and could be changed so that students don’t need to be here a whole week before school starts,” she said.
On the whole, CLI equipped student leaders with skills to make an impact on the greater Choate community, whether it be in the dorm, on the field, or in the classroom. Nichols prefect Racquel Welcome ’24 said, “It made me feel prepared for anything that might come up in my upcoming leadership position.”
