Dwight New York Students Develop a Commitment to Community Engagement

Dwight New York is committed to bringing the IB’s focus on service learning to life by making a difference in our local and global communities. Students engage in service learning through a variety of hands-on projects that connect classroom learning to real-world impact, fostering leadership, global awareness, and a strong sense of social responsibility.

Service learning is deeply embedded in the IB curriculum, and occurs in a variety of additional ways at our School — including after-school clubs, organizations, and affinity groups; and through local and global outreach. Whilst we have long-established partnerships with a range of local, domestic, and international organizations, we are always seeking new ways to connect students with the local community. This year we teamed up with Grassroots Grocery to take over one of their Saturday “Produce Parties.” Dwight students and their families worked together to pack over 12,000 pounds of fresh produce and deliver it to our neighbors in need.

Our younger students learn about the importance of helping others by participating in different class service projects, including packing lunches for the New York Common Pantry’s 365 Program, which provides meals to New Yorkers facing food insecurity; collecting coins to donate to a homeless shelter to help fulfill items on their wish list; participating in an Earth Day cleanup; and collecting socks and stuffed animals for migrant families coming to New York. Service learning for these students is age-appropriate, hands-on, and integrated into their everyday learning to foster empathy, responsibility, and a sense of community from an early age.

Teachers are crucial in facilitating service learning by guiding students in meaningful, hands-on experiences that connect classroom learning to meaningful change in the real world. Middle School Teacher, Heidi Rubenstein, has embedded Service as Action (SA) in the Grade 7 Personal and Social Development curriculum. This year the grade chose to focus on homelessness in NYC, with all classes focused on this theme. Ms. Rubenstein says, “Each session concludes with a reflection, ensuring students engage in authentic service through direct and indirect action, advocacy, and research while aligning with our Community Engagement Principles.”

Service learning at Dwight emphasizes self-reflection, helping students understand the importance of their work and develop a lifelong commitment to community engagement. In reflecting on her service project in Ms. Rubenstein’s class, Grace ’30 says, “I really like being a part of something where I am working towards making a change. I think that is important.”

These service learning experiences empower Dwight students to become compassionate leaders who make a difference in their communities and beyond.

Our Youngest Students Send a Care Package All the Way to Kenya!

Dwight’s Early Childhood Division’s recent service project was to help create and send a care package — including 250 toothbrushes and personalized cards created by our students — to the WISER School in Kenya. Dwight has partnered with WISER since 2009, and every other year, a small cohort of Dwight Upper School students travels to Muhuru Bay to visit the WISER School and engage in a variety of service projects and community-building activities. We are thrilled to see our younger students strengthening the relationship between our two schools and gaining an understanding of the service work undertaken by our older students.