Breck is rolling out a brand new leadership program for sophomores during Community Partnerships time, Stampede: The Breck Leadership Seminar. The nine week program aims to help Breck sophomores “kick off a lifelong practice of leadership,” according to Toliver, Breck’s new Dean of Leadership.
The program has been in planning since before Toliver was hired last July. Toliver was given an outline for a leadership seminar focused on the tenth grade class during CP, and they were tasked with putting together an engaging curriculum fit for the sophomores. Toliver shared that tenth grade was chosen very specifically, as tenth grade is a year in the Upper School when there are relatively fewer external forces acting on the students, such as the freshman transition into Upper School, the junior college search, and the focus on finishing strong for seniors. Tenth grade provides a time to decide how to best show up for the two years left in high school.
There is intention poured into every detail of Stampede, down to the specific animals chosen to represent each “animal crew,” groups of students who learn together. For example, a spider represents big picture thinking, built one step at a time, mirroring how spiders build their webs. Many parts of the seminar are inspired by Toliver’s own experiences learning about leadership during an impactful freshman year college seminar. They emphasized that a main goal is to teach students that “leadership is not a soft skill” and that “self knowledge is just as important as book knowledge.”
The program also aims to “change up the culture here,” by mixing up groups of friends for the “animal crews” in order to push people out of their comfort zones and encourage them to go deeper with people they do not normally spend time with. Sophomore Zayna Kaba reflected that one main takeaway she has learned thus far from Stampede is that “everyone has a potential to be a leader.”
There were some initial negative reactions to the Stampede program happening during CP time, as many sophomores love their current CPs, but Zayna noted that “despite initial concerns, many people are warming up to it.” In addition, Toliver described that “one of the biggest challenges, besides the short timeline to plan, was how to engage 115 sophomores for 90 minutes for nine weeks in a way that feels meaningful.” However, they feel grateful that the students have been so open to the new experience, and they have already seen individuals transform in their leadership skills. Overall, students and faculty concur that Stampede has started out successfully.
Toliver also mentioned a change in CP for the rising juniors that will build on what they are learning through Stampede. Next year, rising juniors will have the chance to return to the CPs they have enjoyed, but a traditional CP experience will not be the only option. Rising juniors will have the opportunity to apply to be part of a “Pathway,” which will be small, experiential and research-based cohorts led by a knowledgeable faculty member. Currently, plans are in place for four pathways: entrepreneurial business, sustainability, human-centered design, and civic and global engagement. Pathways will give students time to delve deeper into a passion of theirs at the intersection of leadership during CP time. More information will be made public to the student body as details become finalized.
Toliver emphasized that rising juniors will still have the option to pick a traditional CP, such as Voterama or Climate Action. This Pathways program comes as a continuation of significant changes to Breck’s CP program, including an extended CP orientation for freshmen at the beginning of the school year.
