CSH SHCOG Self-Study 2022

CONVENTOFTHE SACREDHEART Sac r edHear tCommi s s i ononGoal s Sel f St udy2 0 2 2

WELCOME To the Provincial Team, Commission on Goals, & Visiting Team: Our Intentions We hope this Self-Study document is illuminating, thought-provoking, and inspiring. In designing the Self-Study process, the 91st Street Steering Committee endeavored to create an experience for the whole school community that was innovative, joyful, and additive—in the hopes of yielding fresh insights and a recommitment to mission as our community reflected on our strengths, challenges, and opportunities.

Optimizing Your Experience Because our Self-Study process was highly visual and innovative, we designed this interactive book to convey both the spirit and insights of the process and to enable a sensorial engagement with the Self-Study and its findings.

We invite you to interact with this document and note the following as your move through the book: ● Goals and Criteria are referenced with curly brackets and a separating dot. For example, {IV.3} refers to Goal IV, Criterion 3. ● We invite you to explore in a nonlinear fashion how we live each Goal, formatted in tiles starting on pages 20, 25, 32, 38 and 46. ● The examples shared represent only a small selection of the ways we live the Goals at 91st Street; for the purposes of this document, we tie each example to one Goal, but we recognize that all the work we do serves multiple Goals. ● The four-pointed star ✦ indicates that the text immediately following or the background image is hyperlinked to an artifact for your enjoyment and deeper understanding. ● The narrative of history includes the last seven years to account for the unforeseen and additional challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and exceeds the two-page limit for ease of readability in this vessel.

Thank You Thank you for your commitment and service to Sacred Heart and the SHCOG process. As a school, we have been united, challenged, and galvanized by the Self-Study process and look forward to welcoming the Visiting Team in November.

With prayers for a successful and joyful year for all, 91st Street SHCOG Steering Committee

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CONTENTS

Foundational Principles

4

91st Street History (2014–2022)

9

Orientation to the Goals & Criteria

16

Goals & Criteria at 91st Street

18

Goal I Goal II Goal III Goal IV Goal V

18 22 29 35 43

Major Commendations

49

Major Recommendations

50

Self-Study as a Process

52

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FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLES 1. In the Goals and Criteria, the Society of the Sacred Heart defines the mission of the school as part of the Society's educational mission in the Catholic Church.

2. Each school is accountable to the Society through the Sacred Heart Commission on Goals for adherence to the Goals and Criteria.

3. Each school’s Board of Trustees and Administration establish and uphold policies that are consistent with the Goals and Criteria.

4. The school allocates its resources to support each Goal and its Criteria.

5. The school is in compliance with professional standards as stated by accrediting agencies.

1. In the Goals and Criteria, the Society of the Sacred Heart defines the mission of the school as part of the Society's educational mission in the Catholic Church.

Convent of the Sacred Heart1 is New York City’s oldest independent school for girls. Established in 1881 by the Society of the Sacred Heart, the school is a member of the Sacred Heart Network of 25 schools located within the United States and Canada.

The Board is committed to maintaining a strong commitment to the Catholic education of the whole child, addressing the intellectual, spiritual, social, and emotional development needs of each of our students. The Board is composed of 32 talented individuals who are deeply committed to 91st Street and its mission. It includes alumnae, current parents, former parents, educators, and members of the Society of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (RSCJ). The Board of Trustees has the responsibility, in consultation with the Administration, for setting school policy, maintaining the school's financial health and selecting the Head of School. Its ongoing task is to manage the present needs of 1

Our official name is Convent of the Sacred Heart, but for the purposes of this document we use Convent of the Sacred Heart, 91st Street, and the school interchangeably.

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the school while planning for the future and remaining faithful to the school’s mission as expressed in the Goals and Criteria.

The Board affirms Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat’s vision, as stated in the Constitutions of the Society of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus: Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat considered the service of education as the primary means by which the Society would carry on its mission of communicating the love of the Heart of Jesus. For her, education was never the end. The end was to make God's love known and to rebuild the fractured world in hope: the means was forming young people to intelligent faith, compassionate action and courageous hope.

The Board of Trustees is responsible for working in partnership with the school’s leadership (Head of School) to serve as stewards of the Sacred Heart mission, ensuring continuity of Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat’s vision, and creating the best atmosphere for today’s students and the sustainability of the school for future generations.

While there are fewer RSCJ and religious comprising the instructional staff of today, each employee and trustee takes part in an onboarding process that includes an orientation to mission and education. Today, there are recently established programs for tying the 91st Street community intentionally to the RSCJ. For example, Women of the Sacré Cœur of Jesus (WSCJ) is a group of students who meet monthly with RSCJ in New York City and Albany. The school and students have taken the lead in responding to the Conference’s call for new student committees.

2. Each school is accountable to the Society through the Sacred Heart Commission on Goals for adherence to the Goals and Criteria.

Every five years the school and our community engage in the SHCOG review process. Throughout the process, the community values the time and space for self-reflection on the Goals and Criteria and for actively seeking the involvement of all constituency groups to ensure a broad range of input. Similarly, every ten years the school engages in the NYSAIS process. The SHCOG and NYSAIS processes both generate action plans that impact the process of education at 91st Street. Ninety-first Street will effectuate the action plans generated by both the NYSAIS and SHCOG accreditation processes.

3. Each school’s Board of Trustees and Administration establish and uphold policies that are consistent with the Goals and Criteria.

The Board of Trustees is firmly committed to upholding the Goals and Criteria of Sacred Heart education. The Board implements this commitment by holding its sole employee, the Head of School, responsible for the integration of the Goals and Criteria into the daily life of the school. The Board also reviews major policy decisions and allocation of resources in light of the Goals and Criteria. School SHCOG Self-Study • 5

policies reflect the spirit and content of the Goals and Criteria, and the school’s administration upholds these policies within the purview of their office.

The Board works closely with the Head of School, as well as the Chief Administrative Officer and the Director of Institutional Advancement, though does not get involved in the curricular or operational issues unless asked to by the Head. Before their terms begin, each trustee attends a training orientation led by the Committee on Trustees to learn about appropriate trustee engagement and involvement. Trustees also have the opportunity to attend the Annual Trustee Education to Mission Conference hosted by the Network in St. Charles each October.

In addition, the Committee on Trustees has adopted a Trustee Code of Conduct and Guidelines for Trustee-Parent interactions with faculty and administration to guide trustees in the proper fulfillment of their roles as trustees. The school’s Code of Ethics and Policy on Conflict of Interests are important policies and consistent with board best practices. Trustees hold an annual retreat and complete yearly self-evaluations and evaluations on the effectiveness of the Board and committees. As part of its fiduciary responsibility, the Board manages and assures that the school has the resources to carry out our mission as defined by the Goals and Criteria.

As part of its commitment to the Goals and Criteria, the Board consults with religious and lay experts on important and complex issues. In 2017, theologian James Bretzke visited with the board to focus on church teaching and tradition on gender and sexual ethics. In 2020, a panel of faith leaders, including Provincial Suzanne Cooke, RSCJ, spoke on mission and religious identity. The Board also regularly engaged and continues to engage consultants to ensure its policies and processes are equitable, including the recent head of school search.

In 2021, the Formation to Mission Committee converted to the Committee on Sacred Heart Mission & Goals to serve as custodians of the Goals and Criteria. Their purpose is to provide guidance to all board committees in delineating how they each serve the Sacred Heart mission and our diversity, 6 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals. In regards to equity and belonging, the Board and the leadership engaged Haakmat Consulting for workshops and training sessions for trustees, administration, faculty and staff.

This year, the Board intends to support the SHCOG process and the presentation of the Self-Study to the Visiting Committee to carefully assess its current understanding and expression of the mission, inform the development of the school’s next strategic plan, and transition the Head of School slated to succeed Dr. Joseph J. Ciancaglini effective July 1, 2023.

4. The school allocates its resources to support each Goal and its Criteria.

Following the last SHCOG visit, the school’s leadership implemented action objectives based on the recommendations made by the Visiting Team and the Commission on Goals. We continue to foster our unique identity as a Catholic, independent, Sacred Heart school and reinforce a commitment to institutional and personal responsibilities consistent with the Goals and Criteria. We continue to address the challenges of sustained affordability and diversity through the Board’s evaluation of revenue, costs, tuition increases, and allocation of resources. We celebrate our historic and modern facilities and the vibrant connection to our expanded campus with the addition of the Athletics and Wellness Center. Our newly constructed FutureLab is already creating opportunities for innovation, STEM learning, and cross-divisional collaboration. The school has also enhanced its onboarding process for new employees as an orientation to mission.

In 2015, the school launched two councils to support mission and culture at 91st Street. The Awareness Council is a team focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion and composed of faculty and staff who are paid stipends, serve staggered three-year terms, and engage in external professional development. To date, 14 members of the professional community have served on the Awareness Council, increasing DEI capacity across the school. The Heritage & Spirituality Council is a standing council composed of five members from different divisions of the school, including one member of the Theology Department. The council creates programs that explore and deepen understanding of the heritage, spirituality, and traditions of Sacred Heart education, and of our founding order, the RSCJ. In 2020, the school created the Director of Network Programs to ensure full support and attention to 91st Street’s relationship to the Network of Sacred Heart schools. The DEI Team was established in the 2020–2021 academic year to include two DEI coordinators, one for community life and one for teaching and learning, reporting directly to the Head of School. In 2021–2022, the Administrative Team expanded to include the school’s inaugural full-time Director of Diversity, Equity, and Community Life, charged with coordinating efforts around equity and belonging.

The addition of the Athletics and Wellness Center at 406 East 91st Street has allowed for major expansion of curricular and extracurricular offerings around health, wellness, physical education, and athletics programs. The construction and renovation of 91st Street’s FutureLab includes a makerspace

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that inspires and broadens student creativity and innovation and new labs that are fully equipped and dedicated to the expanding science and engineering program.

5. The school is in compliance with professional standards as stated by accrediting agencies.

Every ten years, the school engages in the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) accreditation process. Ninety-first Street completed our most recent New York State accreditation in 2018. The SHCOG and NYSAIS processes work together to inform the school’s Strategic Plan.

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ST

91 STREET HISTORY (2014–2022) Since the school’s SHCOG accreditation of 2014, 91st Street has implemented and completed significant initiatives and weathered unforeseen challenges, most notably, the COVID-19 pandemic.

Major events are highlighted in this narrative and the accompanying timeline.

Leadership & Staffing The school has undergone a number of senior leadership transitions since 2014, some anticipated, such as board service transitions, and others resulting from changes to the Administrative Team personnel. There have also been significant middle management changes and additions. Divisions have adjusted deans’ roles and responsibilities tailored to the needs of the division, and the Admissions and Advancement Offices have hired new Directors and team members to support evolving responsibilities and skill sets. In compliance with 2019 New York City and New York State mandates, all employees complete fingerprinting and multiple annual training sessions in addition to programs required by the Archdiocese of New York.

In response to the national racial reckoning catalyzed by George Floyd’s murder and the national, exponential increase in bias speech and violence targeting marginalized communities, the Board of Trustees and Administrative Team entered an ongoing relationship with Haakmat Consulting, a firm that specializes in strategy and coaching for equity and inclusion in independent schools. In July 2020, the two DEI Coordinators were officially installed. In January 2022, the Head of School created the role of Director of Diversity, Equity, and Community Life to serve on the Administrative Team. The Director is responsible for managing a growing team of DEI practitioners, supporting academic division leaders, coordinating a holistic program that touches all constituencies, and an offering of affinity spaces.

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Most recently, the Head of School announced his retirement and the Board initiated a search process in January 2022. Ninety-first Street will install a new Head of School in July of 2023.

Mission & Culture Ninety-first Street is a devoutly mission-centered organization and community. Both the school’s 2014 SHCOG and 2018 NYSAIS accreditation reports commended 91st Street for the centrality of mission in decision-making, program development, and operations. Recent major initiatives include the founding of the Heritage & Spirituality Council, the Awareness Council, and the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Community Life, concurrently strengthening our commitment to the school’s Catholic identity and to more holistically center people of all backgrounds who choose to work, learn, and grow at 91st Street.

Physical Plant, Operations, & Finance Since 2014, the school has made major upgrades to the physical plant, most notably the completion of our best-in-class Athletics and Wellness Center and FutureLab science and technology facilities. Other improvements include refurbishing iconic spaces like the South Parlor and Libraries at 1 East 91st Street, refreshing common spaces, renovating the cafeteria, purchasing more adaptable and learning-supportive furniture, and placing greater attention on reducing our environmental footprint.

Systems reviews and upgrades include all-school scheduling, technology hardware, and databases.

Other initiatives include a restructuring of employment compensation and benefits, a review of purchasing policies with an eye to diversify vendors, an audit of Business Office workflow to increase productivity and upward mobility, and increased mentorship for operations, technology, and business staff and middle managers. Finally, a restructure of school debt lowered annual interest costs and made funds available for other efforts.

Strengthening Our Story The Admissions and Advancement Offices share in their critical responsibility of marketing external expressions of the school and increasingly have worked to improve content creation, strategy, and outreach. Both teams have new leaders and some new staff to support the evolving roles and responsibilities of admissions and advancement.

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The Admissions Office adjusted evaluation and admissions processes to be more developmentally appropriate, fair, and holistic, and streamlined and greened platforms and processes. In prioritizing the diversification of the student body, the Admissions Office also broadened outreach efforts to communities across the five Boroughs and partners with access groups.

The Advancement Office completed the campaign to fund and build the Athletics and Wellness Center at 406 East 91st Street and will complete the FutureLab Campaign for Sacred Heart by the close of the 2022–2023 academic year. To help build, connect, and sustain the community and boost school spirit, the Advancement Office also redesigned the website, increased the school’s intentional presence on social media, and increased volume and frequency of communications to families. To achieve this, the Director of Communication was promoted to head an office of Marketing and Communication and a new position of Communication Coordinator was created.

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Teaching & Learning In 2018, the academic divisions implemented a six-day rotating schedule with the goal of increasing flexibility and the time students spend mastering content and skills. With the support and resources of the Awareness Council and the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Community Life, all academic divisions and departments have integrated and continue to embed responsive and interdisciplinary anti-bias anti-racist content and skillbuilding.

LOWER SCHOOL, PRE-K–GRADE 4 Since 2014, the Lower School has added two deans to the leadership team and engaged in holistically reviewing and mapping curriculum; increasing DEI teaching and learning; revising service learning, social-emotional learning, and library curricula; streamlining internal and external communication; updating the faculty evaluation process; increasing regular in-house professional development; and revamping the Associate Mentoring Program. Administrators and teachers have increased anti-bias, anti-racist parent communication, education, and workshops to complement this work and share language and resources. They have also responded to increased parent inquiries about DEI and curricular changes.

MIDDLE SCHOOL, GRADES 5–8 The Middle School has expanded the wellness program to include gender diversity, revitalized the advisory program, embedded mission-aligned DEI work, and implemented a restorative justice discipline program. Administrators and teachers have increased attention on ethical discernment, critical thinking, and social justice; world faiths; technology, digital citizenship, and robotics; student leadership programs; and collaboration in building integrated learning projects. Administrators have adjusted the schedule, academic program, and wellness content and platforms to respond to increased student social-emotional needs and learning.

UPPER SCHOOL, GRADES 9–12 The Upper School has developed initiatives in response to student needs and requests, ranging from increasing mechanisms for student-led activism and feedback to adding new programs and opportunities for more personalized and advanced learning in and out of the classroom. All Grade 12 students engage in a reflective, academic Senior Capstone project that celebrates their unique journey

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through the Upper School and Sacred Heart education. Advanced Placement courses were eliminated in order to offer a broader range of independent curriculum that allows for inclusion of diverse texts and resources and allows students to explore areas of interest. Faculty increased coordination of the social justice curriculum, and Grade 10 teachers examined assessment and evaluation methods. All departments conducted audits of books and course materials and made significant revisions to the curriculum. The administration mechanized student feedback, increased opportunities for students to participate in Network programs and exchanges, and provided access to Compass Education instruction and standardized test preparation for all Upper School students in the hopes of removing economic barriers.

Athletics & Wellness With the construction and opening of the Athletics and Wellness Center, the Athletics and Wellness Division became the fourth major division of 91st Street and developed and enhanced programming, schedule, curriculum, and staffing. This renewed focus on excellence in athletics and wellness enabled the administration to be more proactive about and responsive to student wellness, including depression, eating disorders, suicidal crisis, and emotional distress. Swimming became an integral part of the physical education curriculum from Pre-K through Grade 12 and is a graduation requirement.

Expanded first-class facilities and staff support and elevate student skill development, mindset growth, and performance on every level—from physical education electives to competitive sports. The current Athletics and Wellness strategic planning process will address the cultural challenges of a division that employs many contracted staff and coaches who are not at 91st Street full time and the challenges presented by diminishing access to city athletic fields.

SHCOG & NYSAIS Accreditations To address the 2014 SHCOG and 2018 NYSAIS accreditations, the school has made deliberate efforts to build on areas of strength and streamline responsive programming.

COMMENDATIONS Both SHCOG and NYSAIS visiting committees affirmed that 91st Street is a Sacred Heart school in

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exemplary standing, citing the centrality of mission in all the school does as a key area of excellence.

The school earned commendations for its progress on projects ranging from campus expansion to augmented academic programming. Both committees celebrated the leadership of the Board of Trustees and Administrative Team and the strength, hard work, and pursuit of excellence exhibited by faculty and staff. In 2018, NYSAIS commended the school and superb commitment of the Security and Operations Teams to the safety and care of the entire community, a prescient commendation in light of the unforeseen pandemic.

RECOMMENDATIONS Both visiting committees recommended 91st Street create more community time to get to know and understand one another’s work and engage in collective reflection, silence, and contemplation. The NYSAIS accreditation highlighted the need for more formalized occasions to gather and take stock, to analyze change, and to proactively evaluate progress without the rush to move ahead. The accreditations also identified the following opportunities: ● Meeting the complex challenges of accessibility by a greater diversity of families, professionals, and educators; ● Working to define, operationalize, and expand our DEI commitment; ● Consolidating and coordinating more effective internal and external communications and marketing of the school; ● Harmonizing a fully integrated philosophy and pedagogy; and ● Reviewing technology and information technology for greater efficiency, utilization, and effectiveness throughout the school.

The Pandemic & Racial Reckoning In July 2020, the Board of Trustees and Head of School announced that 91st Street would fully reopen in August, becoming the first school in New York City to do so after going virtual at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic necessitated massive shifts in the way the school operates in every aforementioned domain in order to stay open, robust, and safe. Across the organization, roles were redefined, physical spaces were repurposed, and entirely new schedules, processes, procedures, and methods were designed and redesigned in response to rapidly changing conditions.

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Human resources were stretched to their limits. Nothing about school was the same and yet the extraordinary spirit of community and dedication to mission that are the hallmarks of 91st Street remained unchanged and even flourished.

School leadership, faculty, and staff worked without ceasing for two-plus years to maintain programmatic excellence. Parent and community communications, advancement fundraising, admissions recruitment events, and almost all external processes became paperless and virtual; the Business and Nurses Offices collaborated to manage COVID-19 prevention and contact tracing; the Advancement team communicated COVID-19 responses and resources while sustaining fundraising initiatives; and operations leaders and staff worked tirelessly to respond to state and federal mandates to maintain safe conditions for learning and work. Faculty and administrators worked together to ensure that classes and learning remained student-centered and accessible for all learners, including students struggling with increased mental health challenges. School leaders took steps to boost morale and mitigate chronic stress and burnout among employees.

As the United States confronted the racism of its past and present in summer 2020, the Administrative Team collaborated with the DEI Coordinators to increase our anti-bias anti-racist work and drew on 25 annual hours with Haakmat Consulting shared among administrative leaders, the Board of Trustees, and teams. The school responded to concerns and comments seeking greater diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism raised by the Black@CSH account on Instagram through listening and learning forums as well as through direct communication with students, alumnae, parents, and employees. In response to these alumnae voices, the Parents Association expanded its leadership to include a Chair of the Parent Awareness and Inclusion Committee (PAIC) and the Alumnae Association established an Alumnae DEI Council. Academic divisions adopted the Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards and they continue to anchor curriculum development and learning outcomes in identity, diversity, justice, and action.

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ORIENTATION TO THE GOALS & CRITERIA

The centrality of the mission of Sacred Heart education at 91st Street is conveyed to new members of the community through robust orientation processes and further augmented through events and programs for employees, students, parents, and trustees.

Faculty & Staff Ninety-first Street faculty and staff are oriented to the Goals and Criteria through a year-long onboarding program managed by the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Community Life. At the start of their 91st Street journey, new faculty and staff receive resources and participate in workshops throughout the academic year to learn about and engage with the Sacred Heart mission. Annual, all-school planning weeks and professional development days begin with a mission-centered prayer service and reflection led by the Heritage & Spirituality Council, followed by professional learning opportunities that directly address the theme of the service. Each new faculty or staff member further engages in reflecting on specific Goals and Criteria as they pertain to divisional, departmental, and team priorities and objectives.

The Heritage & Spirituality and Awareness Councils offer Goals and Criteria-centered programming throughout the year for new and established members of the professional community. The Administrative Team invites RSCJ guests to speak at faculty and staff retreats, in honor of Feast Days, and to celebrate new developments, like the publication of the revised 2020 Goals and Criteria. The Head of School selects at least one Goal and/or Criteria as the annual focus each year, leading to regular all-school and divisional opportunities for deeper exploration.

Lower School, Middle School, Upper School, and Athletics and Wellness divisional faculty and staff encounter the Goals and Criteria in curriculum development, faculty meetings, support team meetings, policies and processes, presentations, grade-level meetings, and meetings for first-year divisional faculty. The Athletics and Wellness division further aligns coaches with the Goals and Criteria through 16 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

the HEART (Honor, Effort, Attitude, Resolve, and Togetherness) athletic values. Annual goal-setting and evaluation processes incorporate the Goals and Criteria. In support of professional growth and talent development, division heads, academic deans, and department chairs observe and evaluate faculty annually during their first three years of employment and periodically in successive years.

The school encourages our professional community to participate in Network meet-ups, Summer Service Projects, and professional learning experiences such as Roots that Give Us Wings and Tending to the Relationships that Matter Most.

Students Ninety-first Street students engage with the Goals and Criteria from the moment they enter the admissions experience to graduation day and beyond. Divisional community meeting time, homeroom and advisory activities, holiday and Sacred Heart milestone celebrations, service learning projects, Network programs, grade-level retreats, masses, and prayer services are anchored in the Goals and Criteria. Faculty embed the Goals and Criteria as they develop curricula and programming and reference the Goals and Criteria in instructional practice to contextualize student learning and decision-making. Signature projects—such as the Senior Capstone, STREAM work, and Herstory—encourage students to integrate, connect with, and reflect on the Goals and Criteria.

Welcome events and orientations, handbooks and planbooks, wellness and social emotional learning programs, and disciplinary processes are rooted in and reflective of the Goals and Criteria.

Parents & Families Parents and families are oriented to the mission of Sacred Heart education and the Goals and Criteria through the admissions experience, divisional handbooks, community communications, Parents Association events, and divisional programming, from curriculum nights to speaker series to special events. The Goals and Criteria are a differentiator in admissions marketing and foundational in divisional and all-school correspondence, discussions, interviews, and events. Divisional leaders and admissions officers translate the Goals into age-appropriate language for students and are intentional in centering and connecting to the Sacred Heart mission during presentations, at events, and in communication. Mementos, artifacts, and emblems significant to the Sacred Heart mission and 91st Street history are embedded meaningfully, physically, and digitally, throughout the school, at milestone celebrations, and at community gatherings and traditions.

Board of Trustees The Board of Trustees selects new members who demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to the mission of Sacred Heart education. New trustees participate in an orientation designed by the Board Committee on Trustees and the Executive Committee and focusing on an education to mission and governance in Sacred Heart schools. Trustees are also invited to participate in Network programs for leadership, and throughout the year the Head of School leads Goals-focused discussions at board meetings, communicates community missives, and shares invitations to Sacred Heart experiences.

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GOALS & CRITERIA ST AT 91 STREET GOAL I Reflecting an ethos of joy, hope, and celebration {Goal I . Criterion 3} Community Understandings STRENGTHS There is an overwhelming consensus across constituencies that the school embodies the mission of the Sacred Heart and creates an atmosphere of joy, gratitude, and celebration in our programs and spaces {I.1–3}. Through student activities, community time, all-school traditions, staff- and parent-led initiatives, and direct and responsive service initiatives, the school creates space for generosity, compassion, and hope. Through frequent mass and prayer services, a Catholic-based theology program, and espacio, the school helps all of Figure 1. Areas of Excellence in Goal I by Criterion. When our our members explore and cultivate community members were asked to select the Goal I criterion that is their relationship with God {I.7}. an area of excellence for 91st Street, the first four criteria were selected by the largest percentages of our constituents, as seen in the bar graph. This demonstrates an overwhelming sentiment that Both adults and students live out our the 91st street community is living the school’s mission {I.1} through gratitude, joy, hope, compassion, and forgiveness {I.2; I.3}. mission through frequent setting of 18 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

intentions and reflection on the attitudes of the heart of Jesus and on the meaning and value of life.

When surveyed about their visions for the future, Upper School students note that they hope the school community continues to be one of joy and laughter.

Ninety-first Street has long had a strong religious studies and theology program that focuses on Hebrew and Christian scriptures, the Catholic Sacraments, philosophy and ethics, Catholic social teaching, and world religions {I.3; I.4}. Throughout all divisions, the curriculum explores and emphasizes the quest for life’s meaning.

For examples of how 91st Street lives Goal I, please ✦ see pages 20–21.

CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES While many members of the community feel that inclusion of all faith traditions is something the school does well, others cite this as an area of opportunity. As the school community becomes more diverse, our mission calls us to increase our inclusivity and understanding of other religions and spiritual traditions of the world {I.4}.

Many members of the community also seek more opportunities, space, and time for reflection and quiet {I.5}.

They share that these reflective Figure 2. Areas of Opportunity in Goal I by Criterion. periods lead to reduced stress, Community members selected the last four criteria of Goal I as areas especially among students. Divisions of opportunity.This suggests that the community could make further efforts to include members of other faiths {I.4} as we seek to nourish and departments experience these the spiritual lives of all of our members {I.7} through increased time prioritizations of spiritual life for contemplation and prayer {I.5; I.6}. differently and wish for a unified 91st Street experience in contemplation.

In order to achieve this one body, the community looks to school leadership to lead by example and to foster the creation of spaces for lively chatter, collaboration, and joy.

The school aims to engage community members in pausing, reflecting, and discerning before deciding and acting. Still, most of the community seeks to engage more in personal and communal prayer, discernment, and reflection {I.6} and in the exploration of their relationship to God and to self {I.7}.

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Living Goal I — A selection of curriculum, projects, programs, and initiatives.

Heritage & Spirituality Council This standing council comprises five members from different divisions of the school, including one member of the Theology Department. The council creates programs and services (✦ such as the Mater Admirabilis Feast Prayer Service) that explore and deepen understanding of the heritage, spirituality, and traditions of Sacred Heart education, and of our founding order, the Religieuses du Sacré-Cœur de Jésus (RSCJ). Exploration of spirituality and mission includes awakening and deepening one’s personal relationship with a loving God symbolized by the Heart of Christ, empowering others to claim their own relationship with God, understanding the vision of Sacred Heart education as expressed by the founding Mothers and in the Goals and Criteria, and integrating the values expressed in the Goals and Criteria in word and deed.

The Heritage & Spirituality Council hosts The Busy Person’s Retreat, a retreat that is open to all 91st Street administrators, faculty, staff, parents, trustees, and alumnae, whatever their faith tradition. The retreat helps participants deepen their relationship with God, fits into their busy schedules, allows them to enter into a retreat-like atmosphere and maintain their regular daily routine, makes available a spiritual companion to meet with them throughout the week at a time they arrange, and provides opportunities for communal prayer throughout the week. The annual Faculty and Staff Retreat provides a time to relax, to be still, to be silent, to pray, and to socialize.

Throughout the year and especially during the seasons of Advent and Lent, we prepare our hearts to answer more fully God’s call to practice gratitude and summon to live anew through espacio. Espacio is a term that captures the significance of providing space and time for silence in one’s day. By quietly experiencing God’s love in this silence, we grow in self-understanding as God’s beloved. Saint Madeleine Sophie said, “Great hearts, generous hearts, are required in the family of God’s Heart.”

First Communion & Reconciliation Students in the Lower School, no matter their religious background, are invited to participate in all religious studies, masses, and ceremonies. In Grade 2, students receive First Communion, and Goal 1 is ever present as students, both Catholic and non-Catholic, participate in the preparation for this important day. During the ceremony, non-communicants take on special responsibilities including participating in the offertory and receiving a blessing from Father Kamas. In Grade 4, all students participate in Reconciliation, during which students retell the story of the Prodigal Son, each sharing her voice in the oral retelling. All students, no matter their faith, are invited to speak privately with Father Kamas after the ceremony, and the concept of forgiveness is shared and celebrated.

Chapel & Liturgies Ninety-first Street holds both all-school and divisional Chapel prayer services and liturgies, with divisional events designed specifically for and focused on the students in the Lower, Middle, or Upper School. The campus ministry teams—composed of students, religion faculty, and the school chaplain—coordinate liturgies, sacramental opportunities, retreats, and celebrations of Sacred Heart traditions and Feast Days. Students, educators, and families have the space for prayer, meditation, and reflection during these services as well as other weekly divisional gatherings.

Every January, Grade 8 students plan the ✦ Martin Luther King Jr. Prayer Service focused on principles on nonviolence, drawing from Dr. King’s Where Do We Go From Here? and Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount.

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During the year, the Middle School celebrates two special liturgies at St. Jean Baptiste Church on the Upper East Side. The ✦ Family Liturgy celebrates the special relationship between children and their parents, and Upper School students and their parents offer reflections to the Middle School community.

The ✦ Christmas Liturgy is celebrated every December, and students perform specially prepared hymns and songs for their families as we begin the Christmas season.

Grade 8 Retreat The carefully planned retreat program in the Middle School complements the religion curriculum and offers one off-campus opportunity each year for students to explore their relationship with God, self, and others. In preparation for Confirmation, a group of Grade 8 students work together to plan and facilitate a retreat for their classmates, which includes ✦ student reflections on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Kairos

Grade 12 Retreat Grade 12 is a time of transition. As a continuation of Kairos, the senior retreat, called ✦ Life Directions, is focused on the themes of wise freedom and discernment. Students discuss values, options, and ideals—and ask faculty about their advice on discernment. What choices are life-giving? What is the right direction? How do they leave high school? How do they cope with the risks of leaving family and friends? What do they regret in their past, but what can they learn from it to move on? Is this the end, the beginning, or the continuation of a spiritual life after Sacred Heart? What role does God play in their choices?

Kairos has been designed and adapted for Grade 11 students to spend three days and two nights outside Manhattan with Grade 12 student leaders and faculty members who prepare this retreat over several months. During the retreat, these leaders and faculty members connect Jesus to their own stories of growing in faith. In addition to faith sharing, students ✦ engage in a variety of activities as well as occasions for prayer and reflection.

A few of the themes addressed are lifeline, knowing yourself, God’s friendship, results of and obstacles to God’s friendship, and love in action.

Women of the Sacré Cœur of Jesus

Admissions Ambassadors

Women of the Sacré Cœur of Jesus (WSJC) brings together students and RSCJs in and beyond the 91st Street community. As part of the Sacred Heart family, we are all responsible for carrying out the Sacred Heart mission by cultivating strong connections and keeping apprised of how each individual member is doing. Now more than ever we need to foster Sacred Heart values of love and kindness while simultaneously spreading peace and light throughout the world. To encourage increased dialogue, sharing of stories, and preservation of traditions, students and RSCJ meet on a monthly basis virtually and/or in person throughout the year to discuss how we are doing and participate in activities such as lectures, book discussions, Chapel services, and lunches. WSCJ has gathered at our four Convents throughout the city and visited Albany. During the pandemic, WSCJ hosted virtual gatherings every month, including during the summer.

To give prospective families an understanding of our community, the Admissions Office employs family ambassadors representing different geographies, family structures, race and ethnicity groups, and religions.

Current 91st Street families who are interfaith or non-practicing ambassadors connect with applicant families who do not identify as Catholic so applicants hear firsthand how the school embraces all individuals and families of all faiths.

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GOAL II Engaging in challenging experiences that inspire intellectual curiosity {Goal II . Criterion 1} Community Understandings STRENGTHS All constituent groups overwhelmingly agree that 91st Street educators and students engage in challenging experiences that inspire intellectual curiosity, a global mindset, and a life-long love of learning {II.1}. To do so, educators and students use a variety of strategies to teach and learn—to continually grow and improve.

Faculty and staff leverage professional development opportunities throughout the school year and in the summer, many of which school leaders share and encourage {II.3; II.7}. Opportunities range from recurring annual conferences for ongoing professional networking to once-in-a-lifetime experiences at master institutes that enable adults to inspire and refine their craft and expertise, to distinguished practicums during which leaders apply their study to 91st Street. Inspired by this professional growth, teachers, deans, and division heads develop new curriculum, experiment with different instructional methodologies, and drive divisional initiatives rooted in current educational research and ongoing evaluation {II.2; II.3}.

Academic, cross-disciplinary, and co-curricular programming work together to integrate and develop creativity, critical thinking, and problem solving {II.4; II.6}. Eager to leverage one another’s specialties, teachers and staff initiate most of these collaborations and integrate emerging technologies and future-ready skills. Divisions also hold space and time to nurture peer learning and collaboration in program development and evaluation {II.3; II.7}. Faculty members across divisions and disciplines are 22 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

one another’s best sources of inspiration in learning new skills and cultivating the creative use of the imagination.

It is through our adult educator learning that 91st Street students cultivate their own life-long love of learning.

Educators model learning for students and inspire growth and development in and out of the classroom through a variety of teaching and learning strategies {II.3}.

For examples of how 91st Street lives Goal II, please ✦ see pages 25–28.

Figure 3. Très Bien Card. During a day of professional development, faculty and staff were asked to write Très Bien cards recognizing their colleagues and the school. Later posted for all to read, these cards illustrated how committed the faculty and staff are to ✦ creatively engaging the students in the life of the mind.

Figure 4. Sensory and Empathy Map for Parents. When community members were asked to visualize and explore the future behaviors, emotions, and perspectives of different community constituents through a sensory and empathy map, some faculty and staff examined the experience of 91st Street parents.

CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES Constituent groups vary in their perspectives on the greatest opportunities for growth for 91st Street.

Faculty and students across divisions and disciplines are already enjoying the advantages of teaching and learning in our new state-of-the-art FutureLab. Still, faculty and staff know we can further explore options for optimizing classrooms, spaces, and buildings to better support student learning and encourage more progressive and effective pedagogy {II.5}. We also know that technology will continue SHCOG Self-Study • 23

to affect all constituency groups, so adults will need to wield expertise in evolving technology while teaching young minds to be free thinkers and balancing their own relationship with technology {II.4}. As agents of change, students will need to understand their roles and digital footprints in a digital world, leverage technology for good and for growth, and balance external forces with their life of academic learning.

When surveyed, Upper School students express that they want classes that are more specialized and tailored toward their interests, with a greater emphasis on learning and less focus on grades {II.2; II.3}.

When asked about their visions for the future, Upper School students envision more student-led learning as well as discussion-based seminars that emphasize deepening learning and familiarity with topics of interest such as philosophy, ethics, and current events. They believe the school needs to adopt, embrace, and integrate new technology at a faster pace {II.4}. At the same time, Upper School students seek a better balance in the range of courses, so that there is an emphasis on both the humanities and STEM disciplines and on both hard work and enjoyment {II.6}.

Trustees want to see a more dynamic curriculum through co-curricular programs {II.2; II.4}, and parents want to see enhanced professional growth for faculty and staff {II.7}. Given that faculty and staff regularly develop curriculum and their professional growth, the school may need to communicate more intentionally with families and trustees this fundamental and ongoing work that undergirds the 91st Street educational experience.

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Living Goal II — A selection of curriculum, projects, programs, and initiatives.

Herstory

Love of Learning in Math

Grade 4 Social Studies focuses on the theme, “In Search of Freedom & A Call For Change.” The curriculum considers a variety of perspectives and examines essential questions, including those on ethical judgment and racial justice. Lessons are enriched with curricula from Learning for Justice which focuses on identity, diversity, justice, and action. This curriculum culminates in Herstory, an interdisciplinary project for which every student researches and embodies a notable woman in history, such as ✦ Rachel Carson and ✦ Shirin Ebadi. Herstory is an interdisciplinary unit that includes research, writing, art, creative drama, and public speaking. Students choose from a list of women who represent a range of fields, expertise and accomplishments; comprise a mosaic of racial and ethnic backgrounds; and rose to prominence in ancient times, recent years, or in-between. The list is updated annually based on the whole school’s focus goal for the year. For example, when the school focused on Goal III, the Herstory list focused on artists, activists, changemakers, and legislators. As part of their project, students explain how their woman and her legacy embody the Goal that year.

The Lower and Middle School Singapore approach to the math curriculum focuses on mastery, which is achieved through intentional sequencing of concepts. Students learn to think mathematically and rely on the depth of knowledge gained in previous lessons. Infusing traditional and progressive methods, we nurture not only proficiency and excellence in math but also the love of it. Students are encouraged to interact with mathematics in a variety of ways, from the playful to the studious, cultivating in them the belief that mathematics learning is both important and fun. The Singapore math approach enables teachers to differentiate the program to meet a wide range of student learning.

The school year begins with an investigation of how mathematics is infused in our daily lives as students are encouraged to think about the idea that ✦ math is everywhere. As an example, the first homework assignment in Grade 4 math asks students to bring an item that represents math in everyday life.

Beyond calculators, measuring spoons, and rulers students also bring maps, legos, magnet tiles, and timers with ✦ a written explanation of how their items represent mathematics. This assignment provides an opportunity for students to derive their own answers for commonly-asked questions like, “How will I use what I’m learning now when I grow up?”

Beyond Singapore math, accelerated and advanced courses are available for students who are ready to take Algebra I in Grade 7, Geometry in Grade 8, and Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus in Grade 12. The math curriculum reflects skill mastery and incorporates problems that explore multiple perspectives. As an example, Grade 7 students demonstrate their understanding of algebraic equations and inequalities through the ✦ Figure Me Out Project. This alternative assessment requires students to write their own algebraic equations and inequalities in which their solutions correspond to a fact about themselves. To explore the diversity of their class, students share at least one fact about their identity, heritage, or culture.

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Dynamic Research Projects Throughout all divisions of 91st Street, research is a key skill that encourages students to investigate information from multiple sources and make sense of it for themselves.

In the Lower School, the STREAM (science, technology, research, engineering, art, and math) curriculum builds on children’s natural curiosity and creativity. As an example, the Grade 2 STREAM project is all about biomes. In library class, students research their individual animal and its unique adaptations using online and print resources and graphic organizers. In science, students learn about relationships between organisms in their animal’s biome, and as a class, create food webs to show how all of the animals in their biomes rely on each other to survive. Students then create ✦ a diorama of their animal in its ideal habitat. In technology class, students use Google Slides to create ✦ a “zoo card” with key facts about their animal. In their homerooms, students read and listen to ✦ pourquoi tales, fictional narratives that explain why something is the way it is. The project culminates in the ✦ Biome Project Celebration, where families come to view the students’ dioramas, zoo cards, and pourquoi stories. By the end of the project, students develop their understanding of interconnectedness between living things in nature world-wide.

In the Middle School, research skills taught in library class are the driving force that link disciplines together to create a rich and integrated learning experience for the students. In the ✦ Animal Adaptations Project, Grade 5 students learn how to use various research databases, such as Gale in Context: Middle School and ProQuest: SIRS Discoverer, to research animals and design their own unique animal with physical and behavioral adaptations that help it survive. Then, students use Tinkercad to create three-dimensional models of their animals and eventually 3D print them. Progressing through ✦ four steps, students have designed the ✦ Comminationix and the ✦ Lady Panda.

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The Grade 11 Theology independent research course focuses on the person of Jesus Christ, reflecting on the place of Christ in the New Testament, in subsequent theological, ethical, and sacramental reflection and in the visual arts. Students learn to do exegetical work and to use the historical-critical method in their interpretation of biblical texts. Each student proposes a research project on a specific Christological theme and shares their research with the class in a 40-minute presentation at the end of the year. In 2022, ✦ oral presentation topics spanned an incredible range, from Byzantine Ecclesiastical Architecture to biomedical ethics to Castro’s Cuba.

Dance Education As part of the physical education program, the dance curriculum coincides with many academic subjects and also combines DEI themes into the lessons.

Grades 3 and 4 are the perfect example of this:

National History Day Contest National History Day frames students’ research within a historical theme, chosen for broad application to world, national, or state history and its relevance to ancient history or to the more recent past. Each year, Grade 10 students participate in the National History Day Contest.

Students choose a ✦ historical topic related to the annual theme, and then conduct primary and secondary research. They look through libraries, archives, and museums, conduct oral history interviews, and visit historic sites.

After analyzing and interpreting their sources and drawing a conclusion about the significance of their topic, they present their work in one of five ways: as a paper, an exhibit, a performance, a documentary, or a website. Enjoy Sofia Brennan’s documentary on ✦ Ping Pong Diplomacy.

In the winter, Grade 3 students combine their dance knowledge with their close reading skills of poetry. Working in small groups, students use the Language of Dance notation to create short dances inspired by a poem, such as ✦ Amanda Gorman’s “New Day's Lyric.”

Grade 4 students learn about dance styles from many different cultures as we honor heritage month celebrations. For example, in the fall students learn ✦ Latin ballroom dances as we celebrate Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month and in the winter students learn Black American dances such as Lindy Hop and Hip Hop in conjunction with Black History Month.

Test Prep for All We are now entering our sixth year of partnership with Compass Education Group, which entitles students to 18 hours of one-on-one instruction subsidized by 91st Street.

Our partnership with Compass not only includes tutoring, but also covers their proprietary curriculum, director support, a document camera, and access to proctored tests and grading services. Our goal in this partnership is to make sure that all students, regardless of their own means and resources, have individual test prep made available to them because that is ultimately the best way for our students to reach their full potential.

Les Misérables

A vibrant example of a dynamic, innovative, collaborative experience that crosses the disciplines, leverages the physical environment, and explores history through theater, the spring 2022 immersive production of Les Misérables gave attendees the opportunity to move and engage with the actors. Les Misérables, known for its unmasking of social injustices and its push for love and compassion, asked audience members to see where feeding off of the actors’ energy led them, take the risk to be close to the characters they met and imagine what their circumstances might be like, consider whether they would form the relationships that the characters form and whether they would fight as they fight. Audience members moved to ✦ different performance spaces during the production, ascended and descended stairs, and stood to watch scenes. Accommodations were available for audience members in need of them.

SHCOG Self-Study • 27

Diversity Audit

FutureLab The recently completed FutureLab is already creating new approaches to teaching and opportunities for learning in science, technology, engineering, art, and math. The new facilities—two makerspaces, a research lab, science labs, multipurpose STEM classrooms, a performing arts media lab and sound booth, faculty offices, student lounges and working spaces, as well as a connecting atrium linking the two mansions and a renovated dining hall—will touch virtually every student at Sacred Heart.

With undertaking the project, the school has reimagined teaching and learning spaces to encourage imagination, collaboration, and innovation. Each space has been carefully designed to maximize space and flexibility, curiosity and creativity. Across the disciplines, faculty, staff, and students are now making, building, and bringing to life so much that they previously had limited capacity to do or had to purchase—creating completely new learning experiences, expanding opportunities for exploration with subject matter, and increasing collaborations among educators to create more dimensions in coursework.

Little Einsteins Club

Little Einsteins Club is a student-led science club where Upper School students volunteer their time, once or twice a week, to ✦ educate and teach Lower Science students science. Upper School students prepare and design classes which run for 45 minutes and lead Grade 3 students in engaging with various activities.

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After attending a summer institute in 2019, the Libraries began to thoughtfully audit the library collections and ✦ work with other departments and disciplines to help them identify the diversity within class materials. In order for our pedagogy to reflect our students and our world we needed to reflect, mirror, and expand our community’s understanding of diversity and make sure that our collections are representative of many stories. With the school’s continued focus on equity and inclusion it is imperative that we think about our natural biases as we analyze the books we have, the heroes we highlight, the artists and scientists whose work we hold in esteem. The Libraries have targeted specific sections to analyze—holidays, history, realistic fiction, etc.—and this is a work in progress. The long-term goal is to teach the adults in our community to continually evaluate their choices to represent diversity, inclusion, and social justice in their own work.

Robotics Team The Robotics Team, open to Grades 7 through 12, uses FIRST LEGO to design, program, and build a robot for competitions hosted by FIRST Robotics. FIRST LEGO League hosts an annual competition for the robot that best solves the year’s problem that students design a robot to solve. In 2021, the team designed and programmed a device to unplug on its own when not in use and conserve energy, winning second place in the competition for their environmental innovation.

GOAL III Preparing to serve the common good {Goal III . Criterion 1} Community Understandings STRENGTHS All constituents strongly believe that the school educates to a social awareness which impels to action.

Ninety-first Street has long had this understanding of educating students and our community to take immediate and direct community action {III.6}. There is an overwhelming consensus that the school molds students to be responsible citizens with a lifelong commitment to service and advocacy {III.7}.

Faculty and staff educate our students that they must be aware of the world they have inherited, recognize injustices, and act on their responsibility to grapple with the world’s problems {III.1; III.5; III.6}.

They build academic and co-curricular programming with a focus on applying skills to meaningful endeavors. Serving the common good is one of the most meaningful actions, and students are called to develop their skills in learning from different perspectives, developing a critical consciousness and cultural literacy, and practicing informed responsibility {III.2; III.5}. Indeed, alumnae note and demonstrate that they consistently draw upon these learnings and Goal III throughout their professional careers and personal lives after graduating from 91st Street {III.7}.

Through “✦ Intertwining Vines,” published in 2021 and shared throughout the Network, 91st Street outlines how we as a Catholic-independent-Sacred Heart School root our diversity, equity, and inclusion practices and initiatives in our identity, the Goals and Criteria of Sacred Heart education, the themes of Catholic Social Teaching, and the National Association for Independent Schools’ (NAIS) Principles of Good Practice for Equity and Justice {III.3}. This grounding document serves as both an introduction for new faculty and staff and an anchor for evolving work.

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For examples of how 91st Street lives Goal III, please ✦ see pages 32–34.

Figure 5. Très Bien Card. During a day of professional development, faculty and staff were asked to write Très Bien cards recognizing their colleagues and the school.

Their responses illustrated how committed 91st Street is to ✦ cultivating students to build an inclusive community and actively engage in serving the world.

CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES Constituent groups vary in their perspectives on the greatest opportunities for growth in this area at 91st Street. The Sacred Heart mission calls upon 91st Street to continue educating to cultural literacy and working to dismantle social structures that perpetuate injustice {III.2; III.3}. When surveyed, constituents shared a desire to learn more about what actions would be effective for justice {III.5; III.6}.

They want more opportunities to learn about the root causes of injustice and to build the skills required to engage in direct and impactful action.

As students develop a greater cultural literacy, they wish for more expansive discussions that encourage different perspectives and further exploration of dialogue, advocacy, and action beyond the 91st Street campus and our traditional community partners. There is also a desire to learn more deeply about the complexities of oppression, injustice, and current events and take greater global action toward justice. {III.2; III.3; III.6} In order to have these discussions, students want to interact with a more diverse student body, one that is more accepting of differences. Faculty and staff understand that the New York City environment can promote a diversity of thought and know that we need to further leverage the City’s unique experiential opportunities to support the 91st Street’s ability to form more well-rounded students {III.2}.

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All constituents note that the school needs to articulate goals about the practices we take to be an intentional steward of the environment {III.4}. The school’s mission calls us each to take responsibility and accept accountability in our daily thoughtfulness and actions in caring for God’s creation.

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Living Goal III — A selection of curriculum, projects, programs, and initiatives.

Intertwining Vines

“✦ Intertwining Vines,” published in February 2021 and shared throughout the Network, outlines how the school’s identities as a Catholic, independent, Sacred Heart school intertwine to root our diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, grounding the rationale in the Goals and Criteria, Catholic Social Teaching, and the National Association for Independent Schools’ (NAIS) Principles of Good Practice for Equity and Justice. This document serves as an introduction for new faculty and staff and a resource for evolving work.

Upper School Teach-in For the annual Upper School Teach-In, students and faculty collaborate to design a day of learning and discussion about social justice issues and ways that we act as agents of change in our community and in our world. The day usually includes a keynote address as well as ✦ workshops designed to promote more in-depth dialogue among students. Past Teach-In themes have included the UN Millenium Development Goals, food scarcity and deserts, interfaith discussions, the Big Eight Social Identifiers, Bryan Stevenson’s work with the Equal Justice Initiative, and Environmental Racism.

Social Justice Standards

Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards have been integrated into the curriculum by division. In the Lower School, lessons on identity, diversity, justice, and action are woven throughout each grade. For example, Grade 4 students learn about how to ✦ respectfully articulate similarities and differences in identities (DI.3-5.7) .

Grade 2 students ✦ explore family and group identities (ID.K-2.1).

The Grade 7 religion curriculum encourages students to analyze which social structures perpetuate injustice and which uphold human dignity. ✦ Lessons incorporate scripture and tradition including Laudato Si, Querida Amazonia, and Caritas in Veritate to investigate topics such as workers’ rights, global education, inclusion in the Church, environmental sustainability, and the RSCJ history of enslavement. For their ✦ final project, each student researches a local nonprofit and connects its work to Catholic Social Teaching and the Sacred Heart Goals and Criteria. One project last year focused on ✦ Terence Cardinal Cooke.

Philippine and the Society’s Legacy of Enslavement The Philippine Working Group at 91st Street worked closely with the Network in investigating the initial curriculum of claiming our past and have integrated the work into community life, prayer services, and course curriculum. A group will attend the November conference on Living our Sacred Heart Mission.

Upper School ✦ prayer services have recently centered around remembering and naming the enslaved people at Grand Coteau and their descendants, and honoring the memory of Liza Nebbitt. In Grade 9 Theology, the ✦ final unit weaves together the history and current charisms of the RSCJ and the Network of Sacred Heart Schools, the values of the Gospel of Matthew, and core principles of Catholic ethics and social justice. Students focus on ethical discernment, deciding in community how they hope to live out themes of justice and social ethics as Students of the Sacred Heart.

Faculty and Staff Awareness Salons Hosted several times a year by the Awareness Council, Awareness Salons invite all faculty and staff for discussions that center current events and issues through the lens of Goal III. In 2020, the Awareness Salon welcomed Dr. Mary Zaborskis ’08 to present on Native American boarding schools and the role of the Catholic church and Dani Bostick to host a discussion of racism in the context of the Classics, the Western Canon, and modern academic curricula.

World Language As part of a Middle School initiative to improve reading comprehension skills across all disciplines, World Language teachers of Spanish, French, and Latin researched, sourced, and implemented authentic level- and age-appropriate readers, periodicals, and textbooks. In choosing these new materials, they made selections to ensure the new materials support our commitment to being anti-racist. As a result, these new readers and textbooks bring to the fore the identities, experiences, and perspectives of Indigenous populations and give students the opportunity to become aware of the role languages played in the spread and maintenance of systemic racism through colonialism.

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Athletics & Wellness Center

91st Street places an emphasis on athletics, health, and wellness all throughout the school community, provides student-athletes with a premier facility to practice and compete, and serves neighborhood youth and city organizations through intentional programming.

H.E.A.R.T. (Health Education And Responsible Tools) provides children and their families the tools to develop life-long habits and routines to foster wellness, health, self-esteem, and academic achievement. By providing fitness opportunities, access to affordable and nutritious food, and techniques for healthy food preparation, H.E.A.R.T. empowers families to extend these outcomes into their daily lives. Upper Schoolers have the opportunity to intern at H.E.A.R.T., and many college-age alumnae return to teach classes at H.E.A.R.T.’s summer program. During the school year, the H.E.A.R.T. swim outreach program offers swim classes every Saturday morning.

Since 2014, the program has provided over 400 lessons to over 200 children, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the help of over 100 volunteer swim instructors.

H2O:GO (An Aquatics Specialty Project) is a Network Summer Service Project we developed based on our successful Upper School physical education program in which students receive lifeguarding certification and swim instructor training and then serve others through swim programs such as H.E.A.R.T. swim. H2O:GO adapted this model to a week-long service project that includes completing training and certification in lifeguarding and instruction, discussing strategies with experts on drowning prevention and urban recreation swim programs, supervised experiences to lifeguard and teach swimming to underserved communities, and designing plans to implement aquatics service programs in their home communities.

Through the Upper School Human Trafficking Awareness Club (Lifeway Network Club), students explore human rights in business and the world by learning from and supporting anti-trafficking charities in New York City.

The Upper School Underdog Club is a space to learn about animal rights issues and advocate on behalf of unjust treatment towards wild and domestic animals. The club participates in service opportunities and engages the Upper School community through presentations and services.

Student Led Clubs The Middle School ✦ Diversity Equity and Inclusion Club (DICE) believes that centering the identities is important to becoming a more global citizen. Our goals are to increase awareness and open-mindedness to different points of view, combat stereotypes, and promote inclusion.

Model Congress Club is an opportunity for Middle School students to engage with the American government through a simulation of the United States Congress. Students research topics of their choice, ✦ craft bills, and debate each bill’s strengths and weaknesses before ultimately putting each bill to a vote. This club allows students to develop a better understanding of government function and become more informed about current political issues.

The Middle School ✦ Women of the World (WOW) club focuses on spreading awareness about women’s rights and the treatment of women around the world. WOW aims to educate the Middle School community about the progress women are making to obtain the same rights and privileges men enjoy. WOW is about ✦ empowering young girls to be strong, independent individuals.

Similarly, the Upper School Feminism Club discusses issues facing women today and important news in feminism.

Upper School Amnesty International is our school’s chapter of the organization of the same name which campaigns for global human rights. Club members read news articles on current human rights issues, discuss them, and brainstorm ideas on how to garner awareness on these matters in the school community.

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Service Learning

The entire 91st Street family is engaged in service learning and working to build a better world as a part of our community life.

Lower School students learn about soup kitchens, food pantries, and local hunger issues, then create jars of homemade dried soup for the Thanksgiving donation boxes to families in need. Students also decorate brown bags for the Midnight Run for the unhoused. In addition, Grade 2 students, along with the Grade 5 students in Middle School, participate in the Heifer Walk for Heifer International raising awareness and money to purchase livestock for needy families globally.

Students learn about the importance of helping others “help themselves” by giving them the means by which to do so.

Re-Member at Pine Ridge In June 2022, 18 community members attended our first school-sponsored immersion to ✦ Re-Member at Pine Ridge Reservation. Adult and student participants witnessed the extreme poverty afflicting the Lakota people of Pine Ridge as well as the resilience and strength of character that comes from their culture and traditions. To improve living conditions for families on the reservation and help meet the basic need for adequate shelter, students built bunk beds, outhouses, trailer skirting, entry steps, wheelchair ramps, and decks. They also visited historical sites such as Wounded Knee and engaged in heartfelt conversation with people of the Lakota Nation. Since this first visit, 91st Street has committed to returning to Re-Member twice in 2023.

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The Middle School service program is committed to increasing students’ awareness of issues of justice that involve the larger community of our city and the world. The service team, which consists of a faculty advisor, an elected Grade 8 service captain, and elected class service representatives, plan monthly activities for the Middle School community. Recent events include creating and decorating Thanksgiving baskets for families in need; hosting clothing, book, and food drives; writing cards for the The Scarlett Fund at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; knitting for peace; delivering sandwiches to New York Common Pantry; and fundraising for our sister schools in Uganda, India, and Poland. On the day of their Confirmation, Grade 8 students participate in a ✦ morning of service learning.

“My experience at the Pine Ridge Reservation was eye opening….

While individual activism and service are beyond important, the main work to be done is at a national level. The true nature of poverty and racism are that they’re systematic and often go hand in hand together because of this shared fact…. People listening to one another and making an effort to be less reactionary is the first step towards understanding and, eventually, standing alongside differing communities.”

—Lillian, Grade 12

In Grade 9, students begin a unique two-year social justice sequence that prepares them to look within by exploring their personal values and ways to become active citizens in our local community through YPI (Youth and Philanthropy Initiative).

In addition to looking inward, they look outward by exploring social issues that impact New York City.

The skills learned through the YPI curriculum prepare students to move into the Grade 10 social action program, in which they commit to volunteering at one agency throughout the year to address the needs of New York City residents.

Through personal and group reflection, students enter their final two years of high school with a firm foundation to lead social action initiatives.

Sacré Cœur Outreach Club (Service Club) in the Upper School organizes and promotes school-wide outreach events both in and out of school.

The team works together to choose important causes and design events to increase awareness and create change.

GOAL IV Promoting the inherent dignity of the human person {Goal IV . Criterion 1} Community Understandings STRENGTHS Ninety-first Street fully affirms the sacramental view that the Body of Christ is composed of people and that all are created in the image and likeness of God {IV.1}. All constituent groups strongly believe that Sacred Heart compels our entire 91st Street community to reflect and act in the interest of dignity, equity, and justice. The school centers equity and belonging in recruiting and integrating all of our members into this body through community and financial resources {IV.7}. The community values differences that include, but are not limited to, ability, age, belief, ethnicity, family structure, gender, learning style, race, religion,

Figure 6. Areas of Excellence in Goal IV by Criterion.

Community members believe that the school does an excellent job promoting the inherent dignity of the human person as created in the image and likeness of God {IV.1}. In addition, faculty, students, and parents feel the school creates a safe and healthy environment {IV.4} at 91st Street while engaging well with the Sacred Heart mission {IV.2} and the Network {IV.3}.

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sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. Faculty and staff foster an atmosphere of mutual respect with and among students so that as alumnae they will continue to value relationships and serve as allies for those who do not have a voice.

Constituents feel that there are thoughtful planning processes that include a diversity of voices and multiple perspectives. Faculty and staff ensure that policies, resources, and personnel are designed and allocated to keep students and employees both physically and emotionally safe and to build a community where all feel a strong sense of belonging {IV.4; IV.6}. In fact, students and families indicate that 91st Street’s greatest strength in the building of community is maintaining a clean, healthy, and safe environment {IV.4}. They expressed a deep gratitude for the school’s proactive and thoughtful approach to opening classes in person during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ninety-first Street has had a long tradition of engaging with the Network of Sacred Heart Schools around the world {IV.3}. In the past two years, we have grown the 91st Street Network team to expand programming and opportunities for students, faculty, and staff in all divisions and teams with Sacred Heart schools in the United Figure 7. Sensory and Empathy Map by Grade 4.

States and Canada and globally. The importance When community members were asked to visualize and explore the future behaviors, emotions, and perspectives and value of the Network is introduced to our of different community constituents through a sensory newest educators and students and emphasized and empathy map, Grade 4 students examined the experience of 91st Street students in 2031. as a community and resource so that individuals also feel empowered to seek partnerships and opportunities on their own.

In recent years, 91st Street has increased our education to mission. The Heritage & Spirituality Council leads onboarding sessions on the history, mission, and traditions of Sacred Heart education for new employees. In August 2022, 91st Street offered our first Mini Roots program to bring learnings and insights from St. Charles about the Sacred Heart identity to faculty and staff who have been unable to attend. {IV.2} For examples of how 91st Street lives Goal IV, please ✦ see pages 38–42.

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CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES The school has examined and implemented efforts to recruit students, families, and employees from communities not traditionally represented at 91st Street {IV.6}. Still, our mission calls us to enhance these efforts to recruit and subsequently retain students and employees of a diversity of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. We know that this work requires additional human and financial resources both in admissions and in the daily lives of students, faculty, and staff—and this remains a priority of the Board of Trustees {IV.7}.

With the persistence of anxieties and stressors of life, students and families need a supportive, flexible, and hopeful community within the safety, calm, and tranquility of the school {IV.4}. Across divisions and across grade levels, students wish for a more interconnected community that is inclusive and creates a sense of belonging as well as an environment that welcomes greater freedom of individual expression {IV.5}. The mission and charism of Sacred Heart remain at the forefront of 91st Street’s work as a Catholic-independent-Sacred Heart School. As modeled by the RSCJ, school leaders, decision makers, and community members all need to follow a deliberate method of pausing, reflecting, discerning, deciding, and acting as we call upon the Goals and Criteria through crises and turbulent times.

Figure 8. Areas of Opportunity in Goal IV by Criterion. Our community members, especially the faculty, staff, and board, agree that we can do more to recruit and employ faculty from diverse backgrounds {IV.6} and financially assist students from a diversity of backgrounds in their lives at 91st Street {IV.7}.

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Living Goal IV — A selection of curriculum, projects, programs, and initiatives.

Welcoming New Community Members Welcome Program for Families. The school welcomes newly admitted early childhood families at the spring ✦ Milk and Cookies, during which parents enjoy adult community time as students gather together for age-appropriate community-building opportunities. New admitted Middle School students enjoy a morning visit with their peers. All Grade 9 families—those new to 91st Street and those continuing on with 91st Street to a new division—participate in a spring evening gathering to start building their grade-level community as they enter the Upper School. Grade 9 parents enjoy a reception and students begin their time together with a scavenger hunt and dinner, designed in collaboration between the Admissions team and the Upper School support team. When the academic year begins in the fall, the school welcomes new parents at grade-specific and divisional morning coffee and evening cocktail events and new students during orientation days. The Parents Association also hosts the Kindergarten Family Fun Day in collaboration with Upper School student volunteers. Each new student Grades 1 to 11 is paired and guided by a student Angel for the entirety of the year, and parents have easy access to school information and resources through the Parent Portal.

The goal of ✦ Peer Support is to welcome Grade 9 students into the Upper School community, help them build relationships with each other and Grade 12 mentors, and develop the skills needed to handle typical challenges that arise in high school.

Peer Support kicks off the year on the first Friday evening of the school year at an event called Immersion.

Peer Support groups meet once every six-day cycle and comprise six to seven Grade 9 students and two Grade 12 peer leaders. To support their critical work, the Upper School Social Worker trains and leads the peer leaders.

The Onboarding Program ensures that new employees to 91st Street are integrated into the wider school community. Throughout the year, the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Community Life, in collaboration with the Heritage & Spirituality Council, Awareness Council, and the DEI team, leads group and individual meetings, small group collaboration, and cohort celebration to focus on the Goals and Criteria, growing as a Sacred Heart educator, and the building of community.

Mini Roots was designed as a way for administrative staff and leadership to steep themselves in the history, philosophy, and spirituality of Sacred Heart education before eventually attending Roots That Give Us Wings to connect with the broader Network of Sacred Heart schools. This orientation not only provides a foundation for each individual but also coalesces individuals in seemingly distinct roles across the school as advocates of Sacred Heart education throughout the 91st Street community and beyond.

All-School Community Read and Dialogue

As we continue to deepen our understanding of and commitment to building a community of inclusion and belonging at Sacred Heart, we utilize the summer months to read a selection of books in preparation for group discussion upon returning to and throughout the school year. Recent community reading selections have included the following: ● ✦ The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee ● Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong ● The Bold World: A Memoir of Family and Transformation by 91st Street alum Jodie Patterson ● I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown ● Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson ● My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem ● So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo ● We Want to Do More Than Survive by Bettina Love ● White Fragility by Robin D’Angelo

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Network Programs

We define entrepreneurship as creating value where it did not exist before, through the pursuit of opportunity and innovation. Entrepreneurs ask themselves, “Is this something that could benefit the world?” The ✦ Exploring Entrepreneurship program aims to ignite an entrepreneurial spirit in young women through experiential learning and engagement with young leaders in industry. Participants in the program see first hand how young entrepreneurs are working to make the world a better place and begin to imagine how they might contribute to the co-creation of a better world in their careers, develop the future-ready skills, dispositions, and mindsets through experiential, hands-on learning that will empower participants to make a profound impact in their careers, and build community as young women within the Sacred Heart Network, who will be future leaders in industry.

Grade 10 students have the opportunity to participate in the Visiting Students Program with Sacred Heart schools across the United States and Canada and globally. Program participants broaden their horizons socially, academically, and culturally by experiencing the life of Sacred Heart students in different parts of the world and the country, practicing world languages, and hosting sister students in their homes and here at 91st Street for several weeks.

Ninety-first Street students have studied in Australia, Austria, France, Canada, Italy, Spain, Taiwan, California, Florida, Louisiana, Nebraska, and Washington.

After a delay of two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 12 members of our community will be traveling to India for an academic and service learning immersion in December 2022. The focus of the trip is two fold for students: to collaborate with their peers at Sophia College through an academic learning experience in Mumbai and to work with children at the St. Theresa School, which is led by the RSCJ in the remote village of Haregaon. In Mumbai, students will stay on the campus of Sophia College in simple accomodations and, in Haregaon, at the Bhokar Center for women run by the RSCJ. Our delegation plans to build relationships, reflect, live a simple life for two weeks, and open hearts to experience the rich culture of India.

In preparation for this immersion, Grade 10 students participated in the ✦ NYC-Mumbai Literary Collaboration, a poetry exchange with peers at Sophia Women’s College. In 91st Street-Sophia College pairs, students researched and read poetry by an American poet and an Indian poet, discussed and analyzed them, and then presented their analysis over Zoom.

Middle School Leadership The Middle School leadership program is committed to increasing students’ awareness of the importance of responsibility and compassion for others while offering opportunities to develop their voice. Student leadership and citizenship is encouraged at all grade levels. Two class representatives are elected to serve in the Student Council, led by the Executive Council, which comprises Grade 8 students elected by the entire student body in the roles of President, Vice President, and Service Captain. The Executive Council meets weekly to plan and run morning meetings, special events, and activities. They often spearhead initiatives, request special privileges for the Middle School, and have a voice in determining the focus and activities for Middle School events. In addition, a leadership team, composed of elected students from all grades, have special responsibilities and lead school initiatives such as Uganda Spirit Week, Heritage Week, and Kindness to the Earth Week. As they prepare, research important topics, present speeches, fundraise and run activities, they develop a deeper understanding of important issues and the powerful and positive impact that they can have in both the school community and the greater community. Read the ✦ President’s welcome to the student body for the 2022–2023 school year.

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Kindergarten Buddies and Prayer Partners Lower School students form relationships outside their grade cohorts by participating in two beloved, year-long 91st Street traditions. Kindergarteners match with Grade 4 students in the Kindergarten Buddies program, meeting several times a year to read and spend time together, and form a bond that enriches their school experience. Grade 4 students are matched with Grade 12 students as Prayer Partners. The partners meet four times during the year, to visit, celebrate holidays, and pray for one another as they embark on their next journeys: the Grade 4 students moving to Middle School and the seniors moving on to college.

Rooftop Garden

All-School Community Concerts The 2021 Christmas Concert was one of the first occasions we gathered as one school community after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual format enabled the Lower School Twitters, the Upper School Choir, the Upper School Orchestra, and soloists from the Upper School musical cast to appear together in a concert for the first time. In winter 2020/2021, we established the faculty-staff CSH Sound Collective, a choir to which all are welcome and no auditions are required. Individuals from across divisions and departments made music with fellow community members on a weekly basis. That year, the Sound Collective performed at the school benefit with the Lower, Middle, Upper School choirs, the Upper School Madrigals, and the Upper School Orchestra.

Sunshine Committees The Lower and Middle School Sunshine Committees are groups of educators who aim to foster a sense of belonging and spread joy within our community.

The committees gift faculty members personalized cards on their birthdays, host special treats once a month, and plan community gatherings outside of school. As part of the Middle School Sunshine Committee, faculty and staff can choose to be a Secret Supporter, giving and receiving surprises each month to another member in the community. At the end-of-year celebration, recipients guess which community members have been supporting each other.

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In its eighth year of operation, the Rooftop Garden at the Athletics and Wellness Center contains ten raised planter beds with a wide range of botanical habitats: annuals, perennials, succulents, assorted vegetables, along with a fully enclosed tropical habitat greenhouse. The garden also has seven fruit trees and two composting bins. Dedicated experimental beds allow Middle and Upper School students to collect data concerned with plant growth and environmental conditions. The Environmental Science class regularly uses the roof garden and Lower School enrichment programs access it on the weekends and through summer programs. Future enhancements include expanding the tropical greenhouse, connecting the irrigation system to a cistern, installing an automated watering station, and expanding the use of the garden during summer programs.

Congé Even through the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to celebrate ✦ Congé. In 2022, Congé was celebrated across divisions on the same day with a wide range of activities including Lower School rooftop hide-and-seek, the Middle School water balloon fight in Central Park, and Upper School students flying kites on 91st Street!

Financial Assistance

91st Street endeavors to ensure that each child and family enjoy the full Sacred Heart experience and school community. Many teams— Admissions, the Business Office, the Board Finance Committee, the Board Financial Sustainability Committee, Division Heads, and program directors—work in concert to provide tuition and non-tuition financial assistance, including but not limited to technology hardware; First Communion, Confirmation, and Sacred Heart traditions; programs and trips after school and beyond the school year; transportation; standardized testing and college application fees; and extenuating circumstances.

In response to needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, a temporary emergency fund was established to help families through this difficult time. Typically, over $6 million in financial aid is awarded each year.

27% of students receive financial assistance.

Affinity and Alliance Spaces Affinity groups provide a safe space for students to gather based on self-identity to have conversations, share stories, take action, and empower each other. Alliance groups bring together students who have a common commitment to an identifier group, for individuals who identify as members of the group and/or who support that group. All three academic divisions offer affinity and alliance spaces: Lower School ● Banana Splits ● Students of Color Middle School ● Students of Color Parents Association ● Parents of Student of Color Affinity Space

Upper School ● Asian American Affinity ● Women of Proud Heritage ● Providing a Responsible, Inclusive, Diverse Environment (P.R.I.D.E.) ● Asian Pacific Enlightenment ● Club Middle East Club ● South Asian Club

Community Mural Each year, the school community is asked to focus on one or more of the five Goals. In 2018, the art department began creating a community mural project among students in Grades 1 through 4. As seen in the cover image of this Self-Study document, the community mural in 2021–2022 focused on Goal IV and was constructed in the theme of “the people at school are part of your Sacred Heart family.” Students used tempera paint to create a self-portrait, focusing on color mixing and proportions and capturing their own unique personalities. Many students contributed a variety of sites that they observed around school to complete the scene.

The 2022–2023 mural, pictured here, is a reflection on all five Goals. To create the mural, each student divided their circle into parts to connect with another three students’ circles. The work, titled “Together We Are Better,” emphasizes the interconnectedness that is created in our community—one that values each other, works well together, and reflects a hope that the sum of the parts is greater than the whole.

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Building Operations, Maintenance, & Security The 91st Street Operations, Maintenance, and Security teams ensure that the school is open on time, clean, safe, and ready for teaching, learning, and growing each and every day throughout the seasons. With the grandeur and beauty of our two historic buildings—the Otto Kahn and James Burden Mansions—as well as the elegant and best-in-class Athletics and Wellness Center, our physical spaces stimulate the aesthetic appreciation so inherent in Sacred Heart institutions. This style was carried over into recently renovated spaces in FutureLab. Personnel in the Operations, Maintenance, and Security departments make it possible for 91st Street to function not only as a school but also as a desired location for events and rental use as well as multipurpose space for community-based organizations and their client families—teams oftentimes must transition the spaces from one function to the next with a tight turnaround. The security team is composed of former law enforcement individuals who are a welcoming, watchful, and visible presence as community members begin and end their days and provide a sense of calm and expertise during times of need.

COVID-19 Response In March 2020, the school year was interrupted by what would become the global COVID-19 pandemic. In the immediate aftermath of pivoting to distance learning format, the school established protocols that enabled students to participate virtually and created a ✦ Distance Learning microsite with tools and resources for families. A task force—composed of the Administrative Team, Board members, nurses, and special health and safety advisors—was charged with making preparations in consultation with other medical experts consistent with local, City, and State guidelines. The School implemented a ✦ reopening plan for the fall of 2020 that allowed families to select between virtual or in-person modes of learning. With about 90% of families opting for an in-person format to start the year, the school was the first to open safely in person in our market.

In the time that followed, the school was nimble in its response to cases and notices of close contacts, exercising frequent communication among families, faculty, and staff and by making accommodations to those required to be out of school for illness. The school instituted a vaccine mandate for members of the community consistent with age-appropriate recommendations by the CDC and FDA. While the pandemic presented a number of challenges throughout the 2021–2022 school year, the school community came together to offer the best possible educational experience under the circumstances. The school made essential investments in classroom technology, hardware, virtual learning/meeting platforms, and made possible professional development opportunities for those engaging with these new tools. Many pandemic-era practices and virtual options will continue to be offered. At the start of the 2022–2023 year, the school confidently welcomed students and employees back under these normalized conditions as the virus moves into a more endemic state.

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GOAL V Growing in courage and confidence {Goal V . Criterion 1} Community Understandings STRENGTHS There is a strong consensus among constituent groups that all at 91st Street are encouraged to cultivate their strengths, learn from mistakes, and develop empathy especially in the face of challenges {V.1}. Throughout the most challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic, including when New York City was an epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, 91st Street exercised its resilience, adaptability, courage, empathy, and confidence to keep the school open and safe for in-person learning and work. In the spirit of Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat, who believed that education is a relational endeavor, our passionate faculty and staff seek to find the loving heart of Jesus in each and every student entrusted to their care.

Every day, both in and out of the classroom, faculty and staff create opportunities and spaces for students to grow in their confidence through courageous hope, effective communication, and future-ready life skills {V.1; V.3; V.6}. In a world of crisis and chaos, each day presents new challenges and our 91st Street educators endeavor to practice and model respectful dialogue, informed and ethical decision-making, creativity, and agility {V.3; V.4; V.6}.

For examples of how 91st Street lives Goal V, please ✦ see pages 46–48.

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Figure 9. Areas of Excellence in Goal V

by Criterion. Our community members overwhelmingly feel that they are exhibiting personal growth {V.1} through resiliently responding to the numerous, COVID-era challenges before them, perhaps because the community members strive for respectful, clear communication {V.3} in their interactions with others.

CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES We live in an ever-changing atmosphere of external forces, and all constituent groups identify the prioritization and promotion of personal growth and a positive school- or work-life balance as a clear opportunity for further growth {V.2}. Faculty and staff look to school leadership to intentionally and prominently model work-life balance and personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom {V.7}.

Adults and students need stronger social-emotional well-being awareness, learning, and support by the entire 91st Street community, including families. With the increased demand for mental health education—particularly for girls and young women in the age of social media, a digital world, and global pandemic—parent education on these evolving subjects presents an opportunity for continued vigilance.

Students seek a more interconnected and cohesive approach and experience to learning and living at 91st Street, including more consistent and effective inter-grade cross-divisional communication, conversation, and initiatives {V.3}. In particular, Upper School students wish for a more explicit emphasis on choice-driven offerings in community life, broader interaction with people outside the 91st Street community, and cultivating life skills that will serve them in their futures {V.6}. As technology continues to evolve, the school must not only keep up with training and implementation throughout school systems and processes but also anticipate and be forward-thinking in developing skills and ethical use of technology {V.5}.

As faculty and staff anticipate the future, they are conscious of how important ethical discernment is in an atmosphere of wise freedom. There is more work to be done as we inculcate in students a conscientiousness of and responsibility for their digital use and footprint {V.4; V.5}. As graduates, they will need to carry on as empathetic, contemplative listeners, capable of caring for themselves and others.

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We also need to be more intentional and strategic about cultivating future leaders among our faculty and staff. Our talented faculty and staff are our greatest resource; looking to external, proven leadership development programs as inspiration, we can provide more encouragement and paths for them to develop as future leaders of the school {V.7}.

Figure 10. Areas of Opportunity in Goal V

by Criterion. While many community members identify the responsible use of technology {V.5} and the cultivation of creativity {V.6} as areas of opportunity, all members, and especially the faculty, are concerned about the overall well-being of the community {V.2} during challenging times.

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Living Goal V — A selection of curriculum, projects, programs, and initiatives.

Shaking Hands & Charges

Students in the Lower School are given multiple opportunities to exhibit wise choices in both work and play. Each day students are greeted by name and taught to look adults in the eye and shake hands, a tradition that promotes politeness and respect for authority. Grade 4 students take on Charges, special responsibilities as leaders of the Lower School that prove they can demonstrate maturity and fulfillment of assigned tasks. These responsibilities foster confidence, as well as the notion that it is crucial to do one’s part and to be a reliable community member. The Courtesy Counts program, an integral part of our daily morning prayers routine, encourages and reminds students to treat classmates, teachers, and all community members with respect, dignity, and care.

Dialogue Framework The Middle School ✦ dialogue framework promotes open, clear communication in the classroom and beyond, in the hopes of establishing brave spaces for dialogue that lead to understanding. It is understood that each agreement needs to be unpacked with students to maximize their ability to create and nurture the community. All Middle School teachers are trained in this framework and utilize it in their classes.

Digital Citizenship Program

The technology program focuses on three major strands: digital citizenship, operational use, and computational thinking. Digital citizenship teaches safe, ethical and responsible use of technology. In the Lower School, students use the ✦ Internet Traffic Light as a reminder to access websites that are safe, secure, and appropriate. In Grade 8, students use Canva, Piktochart, and/or Infogram to create infographics on a social media topic, such as usingInstagram and Snapchat responsibly, to teach their peers about digital citizenship. The ✦ Social Institute is a new program used by both the Middle and Upper Schools to help students, families, and teachers explore the complex intersection of wellness, technology, and social media.

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Community Wellness

Each division implements an age-appropriate wellness program that helps students understand how their overall sense of well-being is informed by several factors—physical, psychological, social, and emotional—and the choices that they make. We are ever-mindful that students benefit from a rigorous academic environment only when their physical and social emotional needs have been met. Departments and teams collaborate to support the students and help them build on the foundations established in earlier grades.

In Grades K–2, students work on developing a positive sense of self through our unique Positively Me! Program, which gives them the tools to develop mindfulness, emotional intelligence, leadership, study skills, healthy habits, executive function, and strong character.

The Lower School psychologist facilitates Banana Splits, which convenes students in Grades 1–4 who live with either one parent or one parent at a time. The purpose is to build emotional connection among peers with similar family experiences, to offer a safe place to express thoughts and feelings, and to provide some problem-solving strategies.

The Lower School Affinity Group for Students of Color, facilitated by two Lower School teachers of color, is open to students who identify as Black/African-American, African, Asian, Pacific Islander, Southeast Asian, First Nations, Latinx/Hispanic, Greater Middle Eastern, and/or Multiracial. The sessions involve an engaging, student-centered combination of read-alouds, discussions, group games, art projects, celebrations, and field trips.

406 Facility Privileges provide faculty and staff access to the weight room before and after school and on weekends, free swim hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 5 pm, discounted group and private swim instruction for the family, and discounted masters swimming open pool time.

Middle School Wellness, being healthy in mind and body, is an essential component of the curriculum that enables students to develop wellness practices that will serve them as they enter adolescence—a time of rapid change in physical, social, and cognitive development—and form the foundation of healthy adult habits. We work in tandem with parents to educate and support students through these transitions.

The ✦ goals of these programs include: ●

● ●

●

Providing students with information necessary for safe social decision making Empowering students to make choices that are good for them Teaching students tools to communicate effectively with others Encouraging students to care for their bodies

On Wellness Days, students attend workshops and presentations by experts on nutrition, sexuality education, and personal safety. In addition to Wellness Days, Grade 6 students meet once a week for a wellness course.

The Upper School physical education curriculum focuses on life skills that prepare students for the outside world, such as swimming, CPR/First Aid, self defense, and weight room proficiency. Passing a swim proficiency test is a graduation requirement. Students also receive a full certification in adult CPR/AED and First Aid from the American Heart Association and complete basic self-defense training. The weight room proficiency class provides skills to workout safely and efficiently in hopes of developing a love for exercise and physical activity.

In Life Skills classes with the Upper School Social Worker, Grades 9 and 10 explore biological, socio-cultural, psychological, and spiritual dimensions of human development.

The entire Upper School community works with leading clinicians in various fields throughout the year.

Students discuss decision-making, peer pressure, sexuality, individuality, identity, families, friendships, community, online media, depression and anxiety, and other aspects of mental health and wellness.

Dogs Hank and Stevie are beloved members of our 91st Street community. Students in each division visit Hank and Stevie on the third floor when they can, finding them therapeutic and soothing when they have been upset or anxious.

At times, the Middle School takes Hank outside to join their physical education classes and outings in the park.

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Advanced Biology: Biotechnology Ethics Project Advanced Biology is a rigorous introduction to college-level biology, focusing on cellular and molecular biology, heredity, and evolution, and organisms and populations.

Intended for highly motivated students who are willing to devote considerable time and focused attention to learning biology at the first-year college level. Students develop a sophisticated approach to data collection and analysis through laboratory experiments, reinforcing the concepts and mathematical relationships of biology. Students also consider ✦ ethical issues raised in biology and scientific research and their consequences to the health and lives of people as well as the society and environment.

Forensics on Fire

The forensics team, endearingly described as Forensics on Fire, competes annually in local, regional, and national speech and debate tournaments. Opportunities abound to improve ✦ stage presence, self-confidence, expression, and public speaking skills, as well as to compete and socialize with students from other schools and regions. In choosing their individual events and preparing for competition, students are challenged to utilize time management, communicate a message that they are passionate about, and give and receive ongoing feedback throughout the season.

Philosophy and Ethics: Logic and Arguments Unit The Grade 12 course examines the western tradition of philosophical thought and its influence on the Church and Christianity. Students are exposed to the great thinkers and debates of western culture and become familiar with philosophical methodology and terminology. In the first unit on logic and arguments, students study different kinds of arguments used in philosophy, particularly valid and invalid forms of if-then statements. The ✦ 91st Street Moral Machine is a Python program with two purposes: to show students the connection between logic and coding and to get them thinking about ethics, which they’ll study later in the year. Coding is based on if-then statements and the principles of argumentation, with the code acting like premises and the outputs acting like the conclusions.

Students code their own CSH-themed moral dilemmas through Python to visualize how incorrect logic (or “control flow” in coding language) can generate bugs or errors and how understanding logic can produce complex, functioning computer programs.

Senior Capstone As part of the graduation requirements, each Grade 12 student completes a culminating mission-based capstone project that is born out of her engagement with the Goals and Criteria and the progressive plan of studies in the Upper School. It calls on students to integrate and use skills of critical analysis, creativity, leadership, and ethical judgment that have been embedded throughout the Upper School program. Students reflect on and articulate how their Sacred Heart program has helped them identify their individual interests, curiosities, challenges, and gifts and identify a ✦ culminating experience beyond the available curriculum that they engage over the course of senior year that will reflect in-depth research, learning, and a plan of how the student intends to share her intellectual and personal interests to serve the social good.

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MAJOR COMMENDATIONS

The Self-Study process has not only revealed 91st Street’s greatest strengths and areas of opportunity in living the Goals and Criteria but also highlighted that the 91st Street community has a clear and collective understanding about its capacity and unique value in all community members’ lives and as a Sacred Heart school. This clarity of purpose has allowed the school to move nimbly during challenging times, respond effectively in the face of obstacles, and call upon every constituent group to serve in solution-building. The following three commendations indicate a healthy and strong foundation upon which the school can continue to learn and grow as an educational community.

Joy & Hope

Dignity & Justice

Dedicated Staff & Faculty

At the core, joy and hope at 91st Street permeate our relationships and practices and serve as a beacon for our learning, work, and service. The school embodies the mission of the Sacred Heart and creates an atmosphere of joy, gratitude, and compassion in programs and spaces, felt and valued by a relational community.

At 91st Street, our commitment to respecting the dignity of each individual is sincere, intentional, and action-oriented. The school centers equity and a sense of belonging through decision-making, maintaining safety, and integrating all members into this Sacred Heart family. Because we have a firm understanding that justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion are rooted in our Catholic, Sacred Heart, and spiritual identity, we feel called to nurture a loving community each day.

Ninety-first Street’s hallmark is our dedicated staff and faculty who understand their primary purpose is to love and keep safe all our children of the Sacred Heart. From building operations to school policies, from student support to teaching and learning, the intentional and responsive work is devoted to respecting the human dignity of the whole child.

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MAJOR RECOMMENDATIONS The major commendations of 91st Street position the school to focus not on changing course but on refining the nuances of how we live the Goals and augmenting the degrees to which we embody each Criterion. While there is consensus around our greatest strengths as a Sacred Heart school, the 91st Street community has varied perspectives on our areas of opportunity and growth. This divergence points to the diversity of individual experiences at 91st Street as well as the intersectional and inextricable nature of our work. In turn, these truths underscore the importance of daily and strategic coordination and communication as we address, practice, and build solutions for the following three recommendations.

Pedagogical Program

Community Time

Collective Care

for Life-long Learning

for the Whole Person

for All Creation

Our most fervent hope is that students develop a life-long love of learning so that they emerge from a Sacred Heart education prepared for their futures and with a sense of hope in the world. The school can inspire this life-long love of learning through ever-evolving curricula and pedagogy that are coordinated, future-oriented, and timely. An attitude that strategically centers and expands the learning and growth of educators through skills development, professional coaching, and talent growth can undergird a more cohesive spirit, culture, and experience of learning for adults and students as they journey through their years at 91st Street.

Developing a spiritual dimension in addition to an intellectual one is fundamental to being human. Our mission calls 91st Street to intentionally coordinate, structure, and scaffold the spiritual life, social-emotional learning, mental health and well-being, community life, and anti-bias education through more frequent, consistent, and responsive community time and silence. None of our learning and development is possible without an attitude of reflection.

The Sacred Heart mission calls us to prepare students, intellectually and spiritually, to serve the common good in a world where people of all faiths and global perspectives mutually depend on the earth’s resources and creatures.

Through strategic, coordinated, and collective nurturance and accompaniment of each child, we can refine the atmosphere for students to be reflective and responsible for their intentions and actions toward justice at and beyond 91st Street.

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For each recommendation, we index the Criteria that we believe our work should focus on to inspire and serve the recommendation.

Pedagogical Program for Life-long Learning. Focusing on the following Criteria will inspire this intellectual work: ● II.2 Sacred Heart educators develop and implement a dynamic curriculum, effective instructional methodology, current educational research and ongoing evaluation. ● II.4 The school curricular and co-curricular programs integrate innovation and collaboration, critical thinking and problem solving, the exploration of emerging technologies and critical evaluation of information. ● II.7 Sacred Heart educators assume responsibility for their professional growth, supported by resources and a culture that promotes life-long learning. ● V.1 Student and adult members of the school community grow in courage and confidence as they discover new abilities, cultivate strengths, learn from mistakes, develop empathy and exercise resilience in meeting challenges.

Community Time for the Whole Person. Focusing on the following Criteria will inspire this spiritual work: ● I.5 School leadership prioritizes space and time for silence and contemplation for its members to deepen their interior life. ● II.5 The school utilizes space and the physical environment in alignment with best pedagogical practices. ● V.2 All members of the school community take personal responsibility for health and balance in their lives supported by a school culture that promotes spiritual, intellectual, physical and social-emotional well-being ● V.5 Student and adult members of the school community model, practice, and teach safe, ethical and responsible use of technology. ● V.7 Sacred Heart schools recognize and educate to motivational, inspirational, and transformational leadership.

Collective Care for All Creation. Focusing on the following Criteria will inspire this communal work: ● I.4 The school community welcomes and respects persons of all faiths and educates to an understanding of the religions and spiritual traditions of the world. ● III.4 All members of the school community accept accountability for the care of God’s creation, practice effective stewardships of the earth’s resources and work to alleviate the climate crisis. ● III.6 The school community engages in direct service, advocacy, outreach and partnerships to work for justice, peace and the integrity of creation. ● IV.5 Members of the school community practice and teach with a spirit of peace and reconciliation the principles of non-violence and conflict management. ● IV.6 School leadership demonstrates a conscious effort to recruit students and employ faculty and staff of diverse races, ethnicities and backgrounds.

SHCOG Self-Study • 51

SELF-STUDY AS A PROCESS In designing the Self-Study process, the 91st Street Steering Committee endeavored to create an experience that was innovative, joyful, and additive, priming participants to think about opportunities in the hopes of yielding fresh insights and a recommitment to mission. In this spirit, we centered three themes about the school: future-readiness, sustainability, and one body.

Future-Readiness

Sustainability

One Body

91st Street cultivates

91st Street stewards

91st Street is a

a life-long love of

its resources to ensure

diverse community

learning and

vitality, accessibility,

animated by love,

innovation in pursuit

and longevity for

hope, Catholic values,

of the common good.

generations to come.

and pluralism.

We divided our process into three chapters: discovery, analysis, and validation.

Discovery In the discovery phase, we gathered constituents for visualization, discussion, and reflection and administered surveys and forms to include community members who were not able to participate in events. Constituents engaged in individual and collective exercises designed to help the Steering Committee understand the current 91st Street experience and actively orient community members to each Goal and its Criteria.

To focus on Goals I and II, the Steering Committee tailored the experience to each constituent group.

At times, these age- and platform-appropriate exercises called upon faculty and Grade 12 students to lead Lower, Middle, and Upper School students in their own experiences—which in turn allowed faculty and Grade 12 students to encounter the Goals and Criteria multiple times. Due to the nature of Goals III, IV, and V, the committee designed those experiences in community contexts that allowed for cross-divisional, cross-discipline, and intra-family dialogue and discovery.

Sessions at the beginning of the process warmed up participants by exploring the themes of future-readiness, sustainability, and one body, and each session throughout the process established introductions and norms. The core of each session required participants to engage in discussions 52 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

around their current Sacred Heart experience in order to surface what is timely, timeless, and most urgent to a 91st Street education. As an imperative component of the Self-Study process, participants co-created sensory and empathy maps of future constituents, or users, centering students, faculty and staff, trustees, parents, and alumnae—all who inhabit the future-ready, sustainable, one-body 91st Street community that we envision. ​A sensory and empathy map is a design tool used to explore a user’s behaviors, ideas, and perspectives and to ultimately make more informed decisions to meet a community’s needs.

T

SHCOG Self-Study • 53

The discovery process generated quantitative data across different constituent groups. These data were gathered from word associations envisioning the school in the future and results from surveys asking which Criterion by Goal is an area of excellence at 91st Street and which is an area of opportunity for growth.

To spur visualization, conversation, reflection, and joy, constituent groups also produced qualitative data through engaging in discussion groups, responding to open-ended survey questions, co-creating sensory and empathy maps, and practicing the spirit of the Très Bien card.

Analysis In the analysis phase, the Steering Committee collaborated in smaller teams to focus on different tasks and topics, analyzing the data and reviewing artifacts to develop and test hypotheses. We synthesized our findings, both quantitative and qualitative data, looking for consensus as well as incongruencies among constituencies in the hopes of gleaning deeper insights for each Goal and its Criteria. One interesting pattern that emerged for all five Goals was that every constituent group selected the first Criterion of each Goal as our primary area of excellence. The committee considered a few explanations for this pattern, most likely working in tandem: that 91st Street indeed best lives out Criterion 1 for each Goal, that because the five Criteria 1 serve as the most encompassing Criterion for each Goal they are most prominently addressed by the school, and that the language and positioning of the five Criteria 1 are most easily understandable and accessible by constituency groups.

Validation In the validation phase, the Steering Committee tested insights and hypotheses with constituents and gathered further data to inform the overarching major commendations and recommendations. Though the pandemic limited our ability to gather in cross-constituent groups, the validation phases allowed us to share, validate, and challenge insights across constituencies.

The validation phase provided an additional opportunity for faculty, staff, and administration to offer evidence and artifacts of how we live the Goals and Criteria completely intertwined with our everyday school teaching and learning.

Because our process was highly visual and innovative, we designed this interactive book to convey both the spirit and insights of the Self-Study process. Our hope and intent were to package the Self-Study in a way readers find illuminating, thought-provoking, and inspiring and by so doing increase readership of and engagement with the Self-Study and its findings.

54 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

SIGNED 91st Street SHCOG Steering Committee, September 2021–October 2022.

Tali Balas tbalas@cshnyc.org

Charlene Chuang cchuang@cshnyc.org

Joseph J. Ciancaglini jciancaglini@cshnyc.org

Christine DeLuca cdeluca@cshnyc.org

Maria Devaney maria.devaney@yahoo.com

Elizabeth Kalajian ekalajian@cshnyc.org

David Malito dmalito@cshnyc.org

Thomas A. McCarthy tmccarthy@cshnyc.org

Marianne Palacios mpalacios@cshnyc.org

Jacqueline Mitchell • Chair, Board of Trustees jacquelinemitchel@gmail.com

SHCOG Self-Study • 55

THE STEERING COMMITTEE

Michaela Ablon (2021/22)

Danielle Amico (2021/22)

DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC PLANNING & ACCREDITATION

REGISTRAR

Christine DeLuca

Maria Devaney

Elizabeth Kalajian

PHYSICAL EDUCATION & DANCE TEACHER

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH TEACHER & TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATIONIST

56 • Convent of the Sacred Heart

CHAIR, COMMITTEE ON SACRED HEART MISSION & GOALS MEMBER, COMMITTEE ON TRUSTEES

Tali Balas

Charlene Chuang

Joe Ciancaglini

LOWER SCHOOL LIBRARIAN

DIRECTOR OF STRATEGY & ENTREPRENEURSHIP

HEAD OF SCHOOL

David Malito

Tom McCarthy

Marianne Palacios

UPPER SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHER

DIRECTOR OF INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT

MIDDLE SCHOOL DEAN OF STUDENTS

SHCOG Self-Study • 57