Of Change and Belonging

As I prepare to step down, I still feel as welcome in the HSC community as I did all those years ago

AS I’M NOW IN MY (GASP) 38TH YEAR AS AN HSC ALUMNA, I can say there are two things that truly make the school so special: the first is that everything has changed and the second is that nothing has changed.

Let me explain.

When I returned to HSC as a member of the Alumni Executive in the fall of 2017, I’ll admit it, I got lost on the campus. Everything had changed! The scope and scale of the school has evolved far beyond what I ever could have imagined back in 1985. And I’m not just talking about bricks and mortar. While I can’t comment on the approach to education (and how that’s changed since 1985), I can comment on the approach to the campus experience—for students, families and alumni like me.

Walking through campus, the energy and enthusiasm for novelty, innovation and embracing our differences is palpable. I congratulate the many leaders who made this happen, from alumni to parents to leaders to teachers to students. Your efforts will continue to echo in the years to come. I have always been proud to be an HSC grad—it is amazing to continue to be part of a contemporary, forward-thinking community.

My inability to navigate HSC’s halls aside, I also note that nothing has changed. By this I mean that the HSC community continues to feel like home.

I feel as welcome today as I did in 1985. Through the strength of our alumni network (for which, again, I congratulate the many individuals who laid such a solid foundation for its success), I have a much wider circle of friends and colleagues, but the ethos is the same: you belong. This sense of community isn’t just about feeling good while on campus. A sense of belonging—for individuals and the entire community—has a profound impact on wellbeing and mental health. In some ways, a trip to campus is a little bit like a shot of Vitamin C for the soul. How many of us have received a notice for an HSC event and thought, “Yes, that sounds like fun, I think I’ll attend that.”

By Sue Owen ’85 President, HSC Alumni Association

And this is the delightful paradox that is HSC today. While it has evolved to keep pace with today’s learners, the way we experience the school—those feelings of warmth and belonging— remain steadfast.

To the members of the Alumni Executive, our alumni relations officer Bianca Barton ’03 and the rest of the HSC community, thank you for entrusting me to steward the alumni for these past four years. I am so ever grateful for the support. I leave you now in the hands of my successor, Rob Alexander '89, in whom I have the utmost confidence.