Head’s Message

Throughout this school year, community members representing every constituency have been engaged in developing a new strategic framework for Packer, which will be unveiled in the fall. It has been incredibly inspiring to see so many voices come together to articulate their hopes for our school’s future.

For me, a highlight of this process was soliciting the perspectives of our Middle School and Upper School Student Council members. They were eager to take on the challenge of defining the Packer experience, and I was delighted to find students who were clearly very comfortable with adults seeking their opinions.

This is just one example of the countless times I have been deeply impressed by our students’ abilities and maturity. Thanks to our incredible faculty, Packer students have a real sense of what they are capable of, what they’re passionate about, what they’re excited to learn about — and they use their skills to articulate their perspectives and insights.

At the heart of this self-awareness is student voice. Student voice is about self expression, but it’s more than just verbal expression, such as speaking and writing. Performing, launching a student club, leading your sports team to a victory (or helping it rebound from a loss) — all of these are examples of voice. Voice is every way in which our students express themselves through their beliefs, their actions, their choices, their preferences, and their curiosities.

Student voice is core to the whole enterprise of education.

Student voice is core to the whole enterprise of education. At Packer, we believe excellent education begins with the notion that every child has perspectives and experiences that are valuable to the community. This belief is deeply connected to our commitment to inclusion. To successfully nurture and develop the individual voice of every student, we work to support their various abilities and identities in a variety of ways.

A community that celebrates student voice is a prerequisite for excellent learning. When our students express themselves, they figure out who they are and learn to understand the world around them more deeply. And when they engage with others — teachers, advisors, coaches, and peers — their ideas develop and evolve. This is what learning truly is.

This issue of The Packer Magazine puts student voice at the forefront, through written examples, profiles, and a roundtable discussion with a dozen student leaders. It also features reflections of alumni on the Packer teachers who helped them find their voices here. I can think of no better demonstration of our community’s commitment to its mission of thinking deeply, speaking confidently, and acting with purpose and heart. Please enjoy.

Jennifer Weyburn Head of School

As part of this year’s schoolwide effort to develop a new strategic vision for the school, Dr. Weyburn met with Middle School Student Council representatives to solicit their input on the school’s mission and values.