A Year in Review
FALL/WINTER
Priory in the City
Then and Now
When life is fundamentally altered, what do we do? We adapt. Our intentionally small community is our strength and our families are our superpower. Before and during the global pandemic, Priory parents answered our call to provide professional networking and mentoring opportunities at their businesses through Priory in the City. This extraordinary year was no exception as we transitioned from in-person career trips to virtual visits. Priory in the City is designed to help students explore their passions, see opportunities to create solutions to real-life challenges, and align their career interests with higher education. This signature approach incorporates Asia Society’s SAGE framework: Student choice, Authentic work, Global significance, and Exhibition to a real-world audience.
What do Uncle Brian, Aunty Chris, Aunty Darcy, Aunty Holly, and Uncle Dan have in common? They are Priory parents who generously provided behind-the-scenes access to explore the fields of engineering, banking, higher education, interior design, and computer science. We visited Amelia’s ’21 dad at Allison-Ide Structural Engineers, Ku‘ulei’s ’21 mom at First Hawaiian Bank, and Erica ’21 and Nicole’s ’21 mom at Hawai‘i Pacific University. Prior career trips included visiting Ayla’s ’21 mom at Philpotts Interiors and Emma’s ’20 dad at Hawai‘i National Bank. Priory in the City appreciates our families and their willingness to share their professional insights and workplace environments.
KŪLIA | FALL/WINTER
Priory in the City THEN: Professional Networking In-Person
Girl Power: Priory Students Make a Splash at Girls’ Summit 2020
What is a “Yes!” moment? On our career trip to First Hawaiian Bank, several Priory students glimpsed their yes moment: a preferred future profession or experience that aligns with their career interests. Personalization is at the heart of our Priory in the City experience. As we visited the personal and small business banking areas, Amelia ’21 reflected on her aspirations, “Since I’m thinking about majoring in business, this career trip is insightful in understanding this field.” One of the bankers shared that she participated in a college internship at First Hawaiian Bank and then began working at the bank. Encouraged, Amelia took the initiative to secure a personal internship with a downtown business following the career trip. The trip to First Hawaiian Bank also inspired ideas beyond the topic of finances. The bank partners with the Honolulu Museum of Art to showcase Hawai‘i artists at their downtown corporate headquarters. Kira-Ann appreciated First Hawaiian Bank’s commitment to arts and culture. “I liked the art gallery and various works of art,” the aspiring photographer stated. According to The New York Times, “In the past decade, only 11 percent of all work acquired by the country’s top museums was by women.” Our Priory creatives are thinking about curating an exhibition in the Priory in the City design studio to highlight and celebrate underrepresented female artists. The bank and professional interactions inspired students to think about future careers and provided exposure to various work environments within the financial industry. This school year, seniors will engage in their Priory in the City internships working with mentors and contributing to significant workplace projects. We are incredibly grateful to Aunty Chris, Ku‘ulei’s ’21 mom, and her colleagues for coordinating this career trip for students. The class took a photo near First Hawaiian Bank’s “YES” sign because it is a direct reflection of our aspiration: that students have real-world learning experiences and professional skills to respond to life’s opportunities with a resounding, “Yes!”
“Empowering students to advocate for themselves and change the world is woven into the very fabric of who we are as a school,” said Nicole Field, Upper School Principal of The Priory. Field was thrilled when Noreen Stollberg, grandmother of junior Jemma Stollberg, provided the opportunity for sophomores and juniors to attend the 2020 Girls’ Summit this past February. The annual event’s theme this year, Ignite Your Potential, celebrated girls, successful female leaders, and the power of advocacy. Priory students participated in a mentoring session with female leaders and engaged in STEM and leadership workshops with topics that ranged from Students Who Save the World, DISC Leadership Styles, and Finance Savvy, to Dear World Message. With a commitment to effecting change, Priory girls joined the Summit fully prepared to dive into conversations focused on climate change, food security, affordable housing, and other important issues. In the aforementioned workshop, Dear World Message, students penned thoughtful and heartfelt notes to the world. A missive from Jemma’s message profoundly notes, “This isn’t the world we were promised.” For Jemma, advocacy is most impactful when students use their voice to impact change on issues they are passionate about. “It helps to take the issues to the people in power to do things about it, like heads of big corporations, NGOs, or governments,” Jenna stated during an advocacy session. Generous St. Andrew’s Schools supporters like the Stollbergs and partnerships with organizations such as the YWCA O‘ahu made it possible for Priory students to continue to learn about critical community issues, advocating for change, and exploring opportunities to contribute to the world in meaningful ways.
FALL/WINTER
Priory in the City NOW: Professional Networking Pivots to Virtual Career Trips When our classes went online, we asked, “How might we keep the essence of networking and mentoring for Priory in the City?” Our St. Andrew’s Schools ‘ohana delivered by providing virtual career trips and opportunities to learn valuable professional skills. Priory in the City students ask thoughtful questions based on research. Prior to career trips, students research companies and personalize their learning by preparing relevant questions. Faye’s ’21 dad, Uncle Cliff, and his colleagues gave juniors a virtual tour of Spirent
Communications because students were interested in engineering and computer science. After the career trip, Spirent Communications shared they were, “impressed with the girls.” Priory in the City students network with professionals to explore prospective careers and align goals. Reflecting on the Spirent Communications career trip Robin ’21 said, “I want to pursue a STEM occupation in the future and am considering engineering. I wasn’t quite sure what the classes were that you had to take but based on the answers, I
seem to be on the right track. I have and will be taking a math and science course all through my high school career.” Priory in the City students determine the kind of professional they aspire to be. Amelie’s ’21 dad, Uncle Hanan, gave students a virtual tour of Layout Etc., Inc., which specializes in custom cabinetry, because students were interested in entrepreneurship. Following the tour, Amanda ’21 expressed her appreciation of being able to hear, firsthand, an entrepreneurial success story. “I learned that a major factor of having a good reputation is through word of mouth,” she reflected. Priory in the City students engage in personal reflection inspired by workplace experiences. Luke’s ’29 dad, Uncle Kevin, gave students interested in management a virtual tour of Ashford+Wriston, a law firm. After the tour Ayla ’21 said, “I appreciated when you were vulnerable about your challenging situations. That caused me to understand that there are always challenging situations to face but we can learn and grow from it. I will definitely apply this to my life because I can always use a reminder that nothing is ever promised but if it’s something you really are determined to do then it will most likely end up in your favor.”
MARCIE UEHARA HERRING Marcie’s ears smile when she hears people’s dreams. As the Priory in the City director, Marcie Uehara Herring supports students in developing their strengths, designing a career pathway, and delivering their professional brand to contribute in meaningful ways. Marcie graduated from the Shidler College of Business at UH and earned her Master of Education at Harvard University. One of her favorite spaces is the design studio at St. Andrew’s Schools where students receive college, career, and life coaching.
As we acknowledge the challenges of these unprecedented times, we also see the creative ways our school is able to provide meaningful opportunities. Mahalo to our St. Andrew’s Schools ‘ohana for supporting virtual networking and mentoring. We honor social distancing and continue the spirit of Priory in the City by safely staying six feet…together.