Welcome to MKA's Side Projects newsletter, a place to catch up with learning that happens at the margins of our curriculum and programs. In order to document and celebrate what will be the unique and unprecedented May Term experience of the Class of 2020, we've decided to launch five months before we had originally planned.
Though May Term 2020-Version 2 begins on May 1, we've been revising and retooling it for several weeks. Like so many aspects of life during COVID-19, we've had to boil down this program to its essential components, transfer its operation and implementation to the digital world, and re-engage our participants.
Possibility and ingenuity were not far behind. The stories and images that follow offer a behind-the-scenes look at how we've worked with the senior class to pave the way for discovery, serendipity, and inspiration — all the byproducts of a successful May Term.
- Steve Valentine
Director of Academic Leadership and Assistant Head of Upper School
- Jill Maza
Director of Libraries and Research
WELCOME TO MAY TERM 2020v2
During this unprecedented time for the MKA community and the world, seniors and faculty at the Upper School virtually came together to discuss one very important program at MKA: May Term. May Term is the senior capstone project where students can pursue a longstanding aspiration of theirs in a risk-free environment and is considered to be one of the concluding experiences of one's MKA career. However, since more than half of the Class of 2020 could no longer complete their originally planned May Term project due to the outbreak of COVID-19, there was a lot of uncertainty surrounding when our new May Term experience should start, and what it would look like for seniors.
As a result, a group of eight seniors took part in a subcommittee with the administration to discuss the future of May Term and how it would be amended. After two in-depth meetings, it was decided that classes would end on the originally planned date with the addition of a bridge week to give students sufficient time to develop new plans for their at-home May Term experience.
With this new structure, we have very high hopes for May Term this year. Given enough time to get creative, we know that our class will make the absolute most out of these unforeseen circumstances. Our class has some of the best and brightest that have walked through the halls at 6 Lloyd Road, and we have full confidence that we will take advantage of this incredible opportunity that the administration has offered us. Through their diligent planning for May Term 2020, the administration showed just how much they care about the student experience, and how much confidence they have in us to ideate and complete a new project on short notice. Fortunately, the Class of 2020 will not be taking this opportunity for granted and will do their part by carrying out their personal projects to their greatest potential. We are beyond excited to see how our peers will flourish in their continued journeys as young learners and what avenues May Term 2020 will open for them now and in the future.
All the best,
Alex Chon '20 and Payman Mahdi '20
Student Body President & Vice President
MAY TERM CATEGORIES
Remote Community Engagement (Lead: Ms. Verrone)
A Community Engagement May Term project provides students with the opportunity to partner with a local organization, develop a deeper understanding of the needs in the community, take positive action, and more meaningfully reflect on the impact of their work on all involved.
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Remote Creative Inquiry (Leads: Ms. Maza & Dr. Jacobs)
Through the Remote Creative Inquiry program, students pursue a passion under the mentorship of a faculty member. Creative Inquiries range from purely academic endeavors, such as writing or scholarly research, to highly creative endeavors, such as filmmaking or photography. Whichever way a CI leans, it is driven by a question and seeks to have a specific impact on a defined audience.
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Remote Startup 101 (Lead: Mr. Valentine)
An intense introduction to entrepreneurism, design, and leadership, this is the 5th iteration of a program that has engaged 40 students, visited two-dozen companies, prototyped products, developed go-to-market strategies, and crafted fundraising pitches for products and services in industries ranging from college admissions to restaurants. Students will engage in and experience a repeatable, efficient process for rapid product and service design.
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Remote Internship (Lead: Ms. Maza)
Through the Remote Internship program, students work alongside a mentor in a partner organization or business. Students can also opt to undertake a "creative internship" through which they study a professional field. Students may choose to interview professionals in the field and read relevant articles, among other inquiry pathways, to immerse themselves in the possibilities surrounding a profession of their choice. Whichever path they choose, participants are expected to view the experience through a purposeful guiding question.
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Remote Teaching Internship (Lead: Ms. Darling)
The May Term Teaching Internship at MKA is being adapted and broadened for the current circumstance. Rather than working with a single teacher in a single class, students interested in a teaching internship will work to create digital resources and experiences for students in
grades PK - 3.
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Global on Purpose Workshops (Lead: Mr. Bosc)
For those students wanting to engage in more structured and group oriented exploration of an issue, Global on Purpose Workshops offer opportunities to engage with the world purposefully in times of disconnection. These seminar style meet-ups could follow several different paths depending on interest. One pathway would be to engage directly with the ongoing global health crisis. Another would be to focus on global issues beyond COVID-19. And finally, one other pathway might be a more personal workshop on finding purpose and meaning before heading off to college.
PITCHING MAY TERM
...Means the Learning Tap is Now Open
Before COVID-19, when we expected to run a typical May Term experience, each student participated in "pitch week," wherein they presented their idea to a panel or individual and received feedback. We've compressed that process to prepare for our May 1 relaunch.
Students spent several days rethinking and re-envisioning their projects and then used Flipgrid to pitch their ideas to a member of the May Term Team. May Term hasn't even started yet and already our students are deriving essential lessons about resilience, agility, technology, and "wicked domains" (see below for a nod to the book Range). Here's a screenshot of Mr. Bosc's Flipgrid welcome video.
MAY TERM INTERRUPTED
…Diving Into MKA's Past
Michelle Medawar '20 knew what she wanted to do for May Term early on. Inspired by the thrill of the hunt she experienced while digging into archival sources for her Junior Thesis, and anxious to combine her love of research with a desire to give back to MKA, Michelle turned her eye to the MKA Archives. Michelle consulted with Mr. Nammack about projects that could most benefit MKA and then partnered with Mr. Ruddy, Middle School Librarian and (little-known fact) MKA's Archivist. With the school approaching the 50th anniversary of the merger, they decided upon the creation of a "Merger Collection" that would curate artifacts from this important time in school history.
Michelle writes, "I like to think I know MKA really well. I know the teachers and the buildings and the athletic fields and my classmates. One thing I didn't know a lot about, however, was how this all came to be. I knew that the school was founded in the mid 1970s and that it was formed by the merger of Montclair Academy, The Kimberley School, and Brookside. I knew the names of some key figures like Peter R. Greer and Mary K. Waring, but I had no idea who they were or what they actually did. I wanted to know how we got here and the founding principles that led to my being able to call this school my home."
Anxious to get a jump start on her May Term so she could spend May digging in deeper, Michelle commenced in January before she'd even pitched her idea. Working with Mr. Ruddy, she located, consolidated, and recorded the contents of important records. Right before spring break, Michelle catalogued and researched Rudolph Deetjen's (the then headmaster of Brookside) personal collection of merger documents. "Luckily, I finished that collection right before we had to leave school, and I'm so glad I did, because it was a genuinely eye-opening experience for me. I learned that there was a lot more hostility to the merger than I could have ever imagined, and I was so excited to dive more deeply into that." In only a few short months, Michelle learned that the merger was "a product of changing circumstances and the need to adapt to a new way of life" and was left inspired by MKA's ability "to emerge from a challenging time as a stronger, more unified community than before," an observation that couldn't be more well-timed.
WHAT'S INSPIRING US
RANGE: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein
This book is teaching us about the difference between "kind" learning environments (those that offer predictable patterns and clear feedback) and "wicked" learning environments (where "the rules of the game are often unclear or incomplete" and "feedback is often delayed, inaccurate, or both"). A perfect manual for learning and May Term in the time of COVID-19.
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"Why Online Events are Boring and How to Make Them Better" by Jess Sousa
This article has reminded us that, as we approach an online May Term and try to equip students to perform and practice in online spaces, it's important to try to "stand out by doing things differently." We'll be applying these lessons when we run an online bootcamp for seniors the night before May Term begins.
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"Real Talk: What is UOCD for?" by Sara Hendren
Sara Hendren's pep talk to her students seems like it is directed right at our May Termers. She encourages students to embrace complexity, "move in the face of contradiction," and continue to communicate and be ambitious, regardless of the moment.
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