Emphasis Celebration Shares Group Insights

On Tuesday, June 3, our last day on campus together, the entire school gathered in and around the Pavilion to hear about and celebrate the adventurous, hands-on learning that happened for each Emphasis group last week. Groups met the day before to gather ideas, highlight favorite moments, and collect photos, then created brief Google slides to capture their activities and share them with the community. Each group was given five minutes to share their presentation, with group members taking turns to highlight one aspect or another of their time together. It was a huge and grateful glimpse into the magic and mayhem of Emphasis. Emphasis Coordinators Heidi and Carolyn worked hard all year with the faculty and staff to plan and execute seventeen different programs that ran simultaneously and in many locations, requiring transportation, permission slips, reservations, food and unique supplies. While some groups - like Warrior Cats, Board Games, Self Care and Racing - remained mostly on campus for their adventures, some visited local farms and farm markets, the Escape Room, local sports venues, Lighthouse Studio, Live Arts, Heidi's goat farm, Jocelyn's kitchen, White Lotus Eco Spa Retreat, Carter Rec Center, and some local hotspots for bagels or ice cream. One group performed local service and then attended a leadership conference. Five groups took to the outdoors every day to bicycle, hike, paddle, rock climb and backpack on the AT. While the rain led to some muddy adventures and funny stories, it did not deter any group from taking on their planned activities. Hooray for Emphasis and Emphasis Celebration!