On April 21, the Ethics department hosted the annual Adler Symposium! Named for Fieldston’s founder and recognized by the community as a time to recognize the service work done by members of the community, the event yielded an enthusiastic response from students and faculty.
Shelley Topping-Omodunbi (known by many as Ms. T-O) started the tradition after noticing that there was space in the community to recognize student service publicly. “I started here in 2015 and recognized that there were a good number of students and a good number of community partners. There was so much incredible work happening but the only people that knew about it were ethics teachers, community service learning (CSL) advisors, and a few regular advisors,” she explained. “The CSL was happening as an offshoot of a graduation requirement. So much of the work was mission-aligned, so I thought…we should celebrate it!”
Preparation for this year’s symposium was an extraordinarily collaborative effort. With participation from CSAB I, CSAB II, and SISL classes; a student from CSAB-IT; and several faculty members, the group was able to push through a strenuous process to arrive at a great success. “The process leading up to it was a year-long multi-constituent planning process. We had parents involved, faculty from the lower, middle, and upper schools, student leaders from all of the CSL courses involved. We all would get together on a monthly basis and plan,” Ms. T-O explained.
T-O continued to describe the outline of the preparation process. “First we put together a skeletal version of what the day would look like. Then we started to fill it up with the actual pieces (who would speak, what the schedule would look like, what themes would we highlight, whose voices did we want to center).”
Ana Kolevzon (V) is a CSAB I student who was involved with the preparation process. She described the role of herself and her peers in the process. “The process of preparing involved breaking the class up into sections, each of which focused on different aspects of the event. We had campus logistics, AVI/catering, communications/outreach, and speaker/presenter preparations. I was a part of campus logistics along with Ada, and two CSAB level II students: Morium and Riley. We were in communication with them weeks prior to the event about what needed to be done. The morning of the event, we went to the CSL office to pack bags filled with the correct materials for the art workshops. Then, we went around campus to drop off the bags of art supplies at their corresponding room numbers. We also helped set up the check-in desks for student registration as well as the speaker registration. Lastly, we printed schedules to hand out to speakers, students, and volunteers.”
Cat Hou (VI) planned the event as a CSAB II student. “The process was to break into 4 groups within our CSAB group. I was in charge of the food so I got the dessert and talked to AVI about their menu. We also created the merch design via a student artist and curated the theme throughout the workshops,” Hou described
First, students heard from the opening speaker, April De Simone, who talked about the history of housing inequities and city planning in New York City. Students then attended two workshop sessions, with options ranging from film screenings to student performances to presentations. After a lunch break with DJ Rashad Randolph and balloon animals, students listened to poetry with Project Voice, and finally, a beautiful performance by the Resistance Revival Chorus. Throughout the day, Tats Cru painted a celebratory graffiti mural!
Kolevzon described her job throughout the day. “As a volunteer, part of my role was to sit at the speaker registration table and great speakers, as well as keep track of who had arrived. I showed them to the speaker lounge, and when it was time for their workshop, I escorted them to their rooms. For speakers in the afternoon, I escorted them to workshops that they wanted to attend for the morning. During the day, I made sure students knew where to go. If they looked lost or confused I helped them figure out what workshop to go to and their room number. During lunch I passed out desserts to students. Lastly, I helped pack the tote bags with notebooks and set up the tables on the quad to give out bags to students.”
Ms. T-O reflected on her impression of the day. “My hope is that it has grown into a community-wide event that speaks to the mission of the school that highlights and centers the deep work that we do in the community and on campus as a function of ethics in action.”
Kolevzon explained the sense of connection she felt on campus throughout the symposium. “I think the community really loved the event. I got plenty of thank you’s from teachers and students who had a blast and were so thankful to the school for taking the time to organize it. I think it’s really nice for everyone to have a day to take a break from classes and do something special and unique.”
Kolevzon also had a lot of fun throughout the day. “A highlight of the day for me was sitting on the field during lunch, when Mr. Randolph was playing music and students were making balloon hats. It felt very happy, everyone was dancing and really enjoying themselves. It was a nice break from our normally rushed and busy school day lunches.”
Hou also shared a favorite memory from her last Adler Symposium. “My highlights were the dance party during lunch and meeting the guest speakers. They were absolutely phenomenal.”
Lastly, Ms. T-O explained her thoughts on the event. “Watching everyone move around the campus with enthusiasm and excitement to go to different workshops with so much energy was a personal highlight. Watching the end of the day Resistance Revival Chorus close us out with the powerful singing and message, and the love that they were able to share with us from the stage was an incredibly impactful way to close out the day.”
This symposium was a celebration of so much hard work and dedication to the general community both on and off of Fieldston’s campus. As Ms. T-O put it, “we really worked with everyone on campus to make it happen.” I speak for everyone in saying that we cannot wait for next year’s Adler Symposium!
