Peer Leadership

Browning’s 9th graders at the Peer Leadership retreat.

Written by Blake S. ‘28

Beginning on September 25th, the class of 2029 embarked on their peer leadership trip at the Silver Lake Camp in Connecticut alongside their grade 12 peer leaders. This trip sets the foundation for the year-long peer-leadership program, in which Grade 9 students connect and learn from their peer leaders as a weekly recurring special class period. The retreat itself helps the freshly new to high school boys bond in a place of unfamiliarity and create life-long memories. 

Despite the rain, the boys completed several activities, including a high ropes course, field olympics, and “project pipeline”, where the freshmen guided by their peers were instructed to make the best marble track out of their groups. Although they were unable to participate in the iconic raft building competition, from the freshman to the seniors to the teachers, everyone made the most of what was available and had a great time. 

As for both returning and new 9th graders, the start of high school can be an exciting but also daring experience, especially in a new building, even lifers can feel lost. Going on this retreat helps soothe these worries by getting themselves comfortable with each other, different ideas, and foreign experiences ready to be conquered. 

Though a fun experience, peer leaders are responsible for showing up to this commitment. Although already traversing through the college admissions process, managing school workload, and balancing extracurriculars may seem already difficult enough, peer leaders develop the habits of a leader hands on, guiding students in a place they once were. 

Upper School math department chair Mr. Anderson, who attended the trip for his second year, spoke upon the importance of the connections made on the trip between not only the students themselves but also the teacher to student bond: 

“It was a great opportunity to get to know the 9th graders, especially since I only teach one ninth grade class. It was also nice to be able to bond and chat with faculty, as well as see students in an outside a school setting, especially since they're new and aren't really familiar with each other yet.”

Overall, the peer leadership retreat is an important part of the class of 2029’s year, as it builds character in one another, bonding in ways you’d never be able to in a classroom setting. For seniors, it gives them the honor of passing on this remarkable browning tradition. By embarking on the retreat, they are given the opportunity to pass down the things they’ve accumulated throughout their time at Browning, just as how they were when they were freshmen.