Recently in the freshman Wellness class, we conversed about “cliques” at Darlington. I asked approximately 100 freshmen to list out all of the different cliques they think exist at our school, and I received a wide variety of responses.
They named all of the cliques you might expect, such as cheerleaders, jocks, nerds and popular kids. They also listed some cliques that many of us might not expect, such as emo, cultural cliques, intelligent kids, band geeks (but they are cool now, too!) and sk8ers (spelled correctly as skaters).
I then asked the students to compare how all of these cliques were either similar or different from those at other schools that they may have attended prior to Darlington. Every single one of them said there truly was no comparison. The boundaries that are present in teen movies, public school or even other local schools are just not as prevalent here at Darlington.
Our assistant headmaster recently asked us to think about what it is that we do best in our school and community, and I think the responses I received from the kids shows something we are “the best” at. We as a school are doing a great job breaking down the “clique” barriers between our kids. I’m not saying we are perfect; my students were quick to point out that there are even cliques amongst faculty members. However, they also feel that having uniforms and the same expectations for every student creates a greater sense of equality among the student body.
We are truly an amazing place when the so-called football jock can have the lead role in the school play, or the band geek leads a community service project and is completely revered for it. So whatever social stigma or clique we all grow up with, know that Darlington is doing something great by allowing kids to be themselves and embrace every kind of student!
