Harvard's Caring School's Launches at St. Luke's

Today marks the launch of Caring Schools #CommonGoodinitiative created by the folks behind Making Caring Common—the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Caring Schools aims to “help educators, parents, and communities raise children who are caring, responsible to their communities, and committed to justice.” The campaign seeks to advance three specific goals:

1. Deepen students’ care for others and their communities;
2. Increase equity and access for all students in the college admissions process; and
3. Reduce excessive achievement pressure in communities where it is detrimental to students.

Participating schools take an action that addresses one or more of these goals. St. Luke’s became an “Early Leader” by committing to action before the campaign’s official launch.

St. Luke’s will conduct a full year of student-led conversations around charged issues like religion, race, and politics. Curious Conversations are designed to build empathy, respect, and the ability to listen to points of view different from your own. The name reflects a tie to St. Luke’s Community Goals for Learning (or CGL—the original name of the conversations) and the five thinking dispositions we seek to build in students: Curiosity; open-mindedness; seeking truth and understanding; integrity; and reflection.

Curious Conversations’ student-facilitators (46 to date) trained in the Center for Leadership to guide peers in civil discourse. The group, which is ethnically, religiously, and politically diverse, consists of sophomores, juniors and seniors.

The program is young but they’ve already tackled these topics:

-Religion
-Racism
-Sexism
-Mental Health & Wellness

There is clear synergy between Caring School’s goals and St. Luke’s mission: An exceptional education that inspires a deep love of learning, a strong moral compass, the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead. And the Center for Leadership motto: Find Your Voice, Make a Difference. It’s powerful to tell our children that their work is part of a nationwide effort “to build a more caring and just world.”

We look forward to sharing more news about Curious Conversations and the Caring Schools initiative. You can also follow the national campaign on Twitterand Facebook.

Watch the Caring Schools video on St. Luke's Leading Voices. You can also download our Study Better Guide.

St. Luke's is a secular private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5-12. St. Luke's mission is an exceptional education that inspires a deep love of learning, a strong moral compass, the commitment to serve, and the confidence to lead. St. Luke's Center for Leadership advances our mission by helping students develop exceptional leadership ability. A kind, inclusive community awaits you at St. Luke's. Come visit St. Luke's!