Lise's Lens: April 3, 2025

This week I am reading Oprah’s latest book club pick, thinking about the practice of reading to others, and watching our amazing school community in action for admissions revisit days!

WHAT I’M READING
 
  • I recently finished Oprah’s latest book club pick, The Tell, by Amy Griffin. It is a memoir that recounts the author’s journey to uncover a harmful experience from her past, and the lessons she learns about herself, and society as a whole, along the way. I won’t spoil it except to tell you that it does deal with issues of abuse and can at times be difficult to read. However, I couldn’t help but think about the author and her story during assembly this week, during which we welcomed staff and students from Brandeis’s Prevention, Advocacy, and Resource Center, who shared a trauma-informed presentation about consent and boundaries. It is so important that we continue to educate our students in this way, while also helping them to build the confidence and sense of self that they need in order to access the various tools at their disposal.

WHAT I’M THINKING/TALKING ABOUT
 
  • I am thinking about the practice of joint-reading, or rather, of reading a text out loud to children or a small group. The research seems to confirm that such experience is beneficial both to the person reading, and to those who are listening, so get those paper copies of books and sit down and settle in! This topic also makes me think of a day a few weeks ago when each advisory group was prompted to sit down and listen to a short story (narrated and recorded by our own Shad Sommers-Dehaney!) together. This was one of many examples of ways we seek to foster patience, attention, and joy in our students’ reading lives.
 
WHAT I'M WATCHING/LISTENING TO
 
  • This week, I have had the fortune of watching our school in action for our admissions revisit days. These are the days (in case you’ve already forgotten!) when we invite newly accepted students and families to come to campus to shadow classes, meet community members, get questions answered, and celebrate their acceptance to CSW. I love these days because it gives us the chance to really shine and show off everything we love and appreciate about our school. But I also like the way it prompts me to step back and attempt to observe the school in action as if I were brand new to the community. I feel such pride and delight watching our students, faculty, and staff perform, share insights, and showcase the amazing work they do, day in and day out. I am so grateful to the time and energy that so many have put into these celebratory days.
     
WHAT CAUGHT MY EYE
 
To cap off each revisit day, we hosted a session called “Why I Chose CSW,” in which current students shared their various reasons for deciding on CSW as their high school. It was moving, engaging, and mission-affirming! 
 
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45 Georgian Road | Weston, MA 02493 | 781-642-8600

CSW—a gender-inclusive day and boarding school for grades 9-12—is a national leader in progressive education. We live out our values of inquiry-based learning, student agency, and embracing diverse perspectives in every aspect of our student experience. Young people come to CSW to learn how to learn and then put what they learn into action—essential skills they carry into their futures as doers, makers, innovators, leaders, and exceptional humans who do meaningful work in the world.