Oaks and Acorns: January 2019

Early Decisions, Decisions

We have some early returns on the college process. Early Decision, as you may recall, is the binding arrangement: you apply early, and if admitted, you must attend that school. But now the Ivies and some others have come up with Restricted Early Action, and then there’s just Early Action, in which one applies early and gets a decision early, but there’s no obligation to attend.

Harley students always do well in this process. Two years ago we did a study and found that, over a 15-year period, our students were admitted to selective institutions at significantly higher rates than the rest of the world: at the top 15 “national universities,” as determined by US News & World Report, Harley kids were admitted at a 19% rate, compared to a 9% rate for everyone else; at US News’ top 15 national liberal arts colleges, Harley students were admitted at a 37% rate, while others were admitted at a 20% rate.

Students have already been admitted Early Action to Bard, Binghamton (3), Case Western Reserve (2), University of Dayton, DePaul College of Computing and Digital Media, Harvard (REA), Hofstra, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Engineering, Ithaca (2), Le Moyne, Lesley University, Michigan State, University of Minnesota–Twin Cities, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Penn State (2), Providence College, Saint Michael’s College (2), Sarah Lawrence, Siena, Simmons, St. John Fisher, SUNY New Paltz (2), SUNY Albany (2), University of Tampa, Temple, SUNY Buffalo (3), Ursinus, and the University of Vermont (2).

The ED admits are Barnard, Boston University, Brandeis, Clarkson (2), University of Rochester (3), Trinity College, and the College of William and Mary. The Class of 2019 has 45 seniors who have completed 426 college applications thus far.

Harley, Left of the Dial

Tune into WXXI’s Connections with Evan Dawson recently and you run a very strong chance of hearing a Harley voice on the program. First up was our Hospice and MIndfulness teacher Sybil Prince ’00, speaking to the question, Can empathy be taught? Listen Here.

Then senior Jacob LaDue ’19, as a member of Harley’s award-winning Biomimicry Club, was invited to talk about environmental innovation and the Seneca Park Zoo Society’s inaugural environmental innovation awards. Listen here. 

And for more on Harley’s excellent Biomimicry project, check out this article from the Biomimicry Institute.

And most recently, I—with, as my brothers like to tell me, a face made for radio—was invited to comment on the topic of grade inflation, pursuant to an article from Inside Higher Ed. Listen here.

Don’t Just Take Our Word for It

Risky Play

Harley has been a proponent of natural (and, yes, risky) play since our very beginnings in 1917—and if you look at historic school photographs you find happy students screaming down a homemade toboggan run, wading in the creek, or climbing up the apple orchard trees. Children love to play in risky ways, and doing so fuels their confidence. The joy of freedom with just the right amount of risk produces one of the greatest experiences in childhood, the feeling of thrill. Our new Winslow Natural Playground & Outdoor Learning Center will provide space for our students to use their imaginations and, indeed, take those skill-building, confidence-building chances. Here is a link to an article from Psychology Today that further explores why children love—and need—risky play.

Empathy

Modeling and teaching empathy happens at all ages for students at Harley. What does this mean when our fine young people graduate, head off to college, and eventually become part of the working world?

According to this article from Forbes, they will be brimming with the very skill employers value as they look for ways to increase empathy in organizations. Empathy as a change agent, your time has come!