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Eucharistic ministers, living our mission through First Fridays, Lower School capstone projects, the Network Exchange program, and more!
—SHANNON, 4TH GRADE
“I experienced joyful learning when we did the marshmallow challenge in English class. The goal was to make the tallest tower possible. We were laughing the whole time!” —RILEY, 7TH GRADE
Always seeking to improve the student experience, Mrs. Frazier used her joyful learning approach as she planned and led professional workshops in cultivating imagination, innovation, inspiration, interdisciplinary, and interdivisional connections. In words and deeds, she conveyed her passion for relational teaching and learning. Her faculty and staff cherished the beautiful handwritten notes of thanks and gratitude, the giant sunflower in her cottage garden, the bud vases filled with zinnias and lavender, the shared children’s books and scholarly articles. No surprise that Mrs. Frazier loves knitting and gardening, long trail hikes on and off campus, ocean swimming, and adventures in the natural world. Gardening and weaving are apt metaphors for Mrs. Frazier’s stewardship because landscapes, like young girls and women, are dynamic and ever evolving, requiring watchful care, autonomy, and love. And seeds that are nurtured in the rich soil of a Sacred Heart education are the “roots that give us wings.”
Under Mrs. Frazier’s leadership, the school enjoyed a renewed emphasis on the arts, evidenced by the newly hung student artwork visible throughout all corridors, the front hall, and parlor. She supported the expansion of the Broadcast Journalism program into a Media Studies, Design, and Innovation program, which benefits students and faculty alike. In addition, she reinvigorated professional learning among faculty and strengthened cross-cohort collaboration.
Finally, Mrs. Frazier has championed Sacred Heart’s sustainable future, establishing partnerships with the Audubon Society and moving our campus towards becoming a certified sanctuary, as well as making efficient facility upgrades that support our stewardship of the environment. Thank you, Mrs. Frazier, for sharing your bountiful gifts with our community and inspiring Sacred Heart Greenwich to vigorously and joyfully live out its mission.
“I experienced joyful learning around the Harkness table with my 10th grade honors English class. These wonderful girls are so passionate about literature and so passionate about talking about literature together. The girls are excited to share their ideas, build on each other’s ideas, to challenge each other. They are not afraid to
take risks.” —SARAH MARTIN, UPPER SCHOOL ENGLISH TEACHER
INNOVATE. COLLABORATE.
Repeat
Innovation and collaboration are the name of the game when it comes to implementing and promoting Sacred Heart Greenwich’s school-wide theme of joyful learning for the 2021–2022 academic year.
Taken directly from Goal II of the Sacred Heart Goals & Criteria: “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.” So what exactly does this mean for faculty, staff, and students on a daily basis?
Here at Sacred Heart Greenwich, innovation manifests itself in a variety of ways, from design thinking strategies implemented by faculty and staff, to the use of physical campus space such as the newly opened Innovation Lab, to the opportunity to learn from speakers outside of the community from the likes of IBM, NASA, and more.
This year’s emphasis on innovation through joyful learning began before the school doors were even open to students, with the participation of faculty and staff in multiple design thinking workshops led by educator and innovator don buckley. The workshops covered topics such as finding inspiration, mind mapping, and using the classroom experience as a means for solving problems. “Design thinking is a symphony performance for Sacred Heart,” Head of School Meg Frazier commented. “Reflection, real-world problem-solving, and innovation have always been a part of our philosophy. Taking risks — good ones — and thinking about how we make the world a better place are inherent in forming leaders for our future.”
Just one of the ways in which faculty members have brought this design thinking methodology into their own classrooms is through the use of the Harkness table. Also known as the Socratic Seminar, this method of teaching encourages students to make discoveries on their own and promotes deep engagement of materials by having the students sit in a circle and conduct a conversation about the material without hand-raising and little to no teacher interruption. In a professional development presentation led by faculty members Matthew Blake, Holly Marvin, Sam McCoy, and Marissa Nieporte, these teachers across disciplines and divisions exemplified how this style of innovative and dynamic teaching can be applied in math, foreign language, English, and history classes.
Meanwhile, Director of Media Studies, Design & Innovation Ellyn Stewart brings this design thinking to life through the newly minted Innovation Lab and Makerspace. Earlier this school year, Ms. Stewart, along with Director of Educational Technology Karl Haeseler and Middle School Director of Technology and Innovation Deanna George, hosted an Innovation Lab Mixer in which faculty and staff were invited into the space to explore VR technology and educational apps.
“Mrs. Frazier charged us as educators to imagine how we might cultivate connections across divisions and departments,” Ms. Stewart reflected. “I was thrilled to see more than 30 faculty members from all three divisions gather to explore curricular collaborations and to practice media literacy and Makerspace activities that will drive imaginative and innovative student learning.” The Innovation Lab Mixer proved that the lab isn’t only a place for Sacred Heart students to transform into creators, media makers, digital citizens, critical thinkers, and transformational leaders, but also somewhere that Sacred Heart educators can get a piece of the action. We are grateful to donors whose generosity to Shine Our Light enabled the creation of the lab. Because of our community’s commitment, the lab’s flexible furniture, colorful paint, whiteboards, and blackout blinds helped transform student learning and creativity. Indeed, students in each division report feeling more imaginative, joyful, creative, and collaborative! The celebration of Computer Science Week is another example of the important roles innovation and collaboration play in joyful learning. For a very special final presentation, Upper Schoolers got the chance to hear from Nancy Greco, an engineer and director of research for Next Generation Computing at IBM. The best part? Ms. Greco didn’t come alone — she brought along SPOT, a mobile robot dog that walked across the stage, performed a dance, and tilted its head to the side all while Ms. Greco explained the robotics and technology that made SPOT possible. When it comes to innovation at Sacred Heart Greenwich, there really is something for everyone.
ART FROM THE HEART:
Innovation Style
Upper School art teachers Paula Westcott and Marnie McLaughlin came back from the New York State Art Teachers Association Sagamore Summer Institute with an ambitious idea. After a weeklong woodblock printing workshop, they set out to create a woodblock design and print as a tribute to Sacred Heart. Both teachers agree that the project was an incredible opportunity to strengthen their printmaking skills and to demonstrate for their students a printmaking method that has been used for thousands of years. Mrs. McLaughlin reflected on the collaborative creative process, saying, “It was an important example for students to see their teachers collaborate as artists on a work for our community that celebrates our love for the School.” Talk about bringing innovation and collaboration to the art classroom!
