Teachers at Science Leadership Academy send a Post-Election Message
From the late hours of the night on Tuesday, November 8 to the early hours of the morning on November 9, a group of educators from Science Leadership Academy sacrificed sleep to write a message to their students and the greater SLA community.
The message began with two reminders, first about the school:
“As an inquiry-based school, SLA believes in asking questions, challenging assumptions, and working together to better understand each other and the world.”
And then about the students, families, and staff themselves:
“We are a diverse group, and we embrace every member of our community, regardless of their identity.”
Larissa Pahomov, an English and Journalism teacher at SLA, spearheaded the writing of the message, which continues with the declaration:
“We also refuse to insult, threaten, exclude, disempower, or vilify others based on who they are or what they think.”
The message was written on large sheet paper and hung in the windows of SLA’s Center City building, posted in the school’s hallways, published on the school’s website by co-Principal Chris Lehmann, and read aloud to classes by all first-period teachers.
“In brief, once we realized what the outcome of election night would be, we wanted to communicate to our students that we were going to continue to reject the hateful, disruptive rhetoric that was attached to—and sometimes came from—the Trump campaign,” Ms. Pahomov said.
To Dan Symonds, a History teacher in his first year at SLA who was also part of the team that spearheaded writing the letter, the post-election letter demonstrates how the inquiry-based, Innovation Network school is at once an inclusive, safe space for all viewpoints and a place where neutrality in the face of intolerance, racism, and xenophobia is not an option.
“Students informed me that some of their friends at other high schools were told that the post-election discussion wasn't appropriate in class, and that it should live strictly between friends and family so as to avoid potential conflict,” he explained. “In my own classes, the election and its fallout has galvanized more open, critical, and earnest classroom discussion in general.”
“We’ve always been very intentional about our culture,” Ms. Pahomov said about SLA. “We’ve never regretted starting a conversation here.”
This culture of open and productive discourse—even about issues as potentially sensitive as politics—exists throughout the school. On November 9, teachers in every first period classroom read the post-election letter and then encouraged students to speak out about their reactions and emotions. While discussions about current events “often get handed off to the history teachers,” as Ms. Pahomov pointed out, at SLA, teachers in all subjects were dedicated to providing time to reflect on and debrief the election.
This also meant that all SLA students had to listen to their peers’ varying reactions and opinions. Although the letter took a clear stance against intolerant views, Ms. Pahomov emphasized that all students should feel comfortable about sharing their opinions.
“We wanted to also communicate that our building would continue to be a safe space for political debate,” she explained. “We had many students come to school in tears on November 9, frightened for the safety and security of themselves and their families. But we also had students whose families voted for Trump, and came to school anxious about their own place in our community.”
The letter reflects this sentiment, proclaiming,
“We listen before we speak. We see each other as complex individuals, not stereotypes. We protect and defend each other when needed. And when we disagree, we treat each other with decency.”
Mr. Symonds pointed to the importance of quickly responding to momentous current events. Speaking about the election in its immediate aftermath set a precedent and “created a norm for safe yet provocative discussion in class,” he said.
“The most common feedback I heard from students about the letter was that it was an early and clear signal from educators at our school that honest dialogue, including political talk, was welcome in our school,” Mr. Symonds said. “Whatever their stance, the letter was a reminder that we embrace students' authentic selves, no matter how their individual experiences and ideas shape who they are as SLA community members.”
Plus, speaking openly about the election results has helped students become more interested in American politics and its tricky intricacies, such as the Electoral College. Mr. Symonds said his students seem to be more engaged in both national and local politics, and for some, this is a first. In his classes, Mr. Symonds’s main post-election message is clear: participation in politics is extremely important—and if individuals choose to be passive, they must recognize that their inaction does affect others.
Ms. Pahomov echoed Mr. Symonds’s sentiments about the value of political discourse in the classroom. “Were it not for a building like SLA, these different student demographics might never have crossed paths in the first place,” she said. “The diverse populations of Philadelphia are too often segregated—and this segregation encourages political and cultural ignorance. SLA's student population closely mirrors the racial makeup of Philadelphia as a whole, and our work towards empathy and understanding is something we make explicit to our students each and every day, not only in the wake of political upheaval.”
To Chris Lehmann, founder and co-Principal of SLA and Assistant Superintendent of the Innovation Network, the letter speaks to the values that SLA aims to promote everyday: “the ideas of a deep belief in inquiry as a mode of learning and an equal commitment to the ethic of care so that everyone in our community feels valued and cared for,” he said.
“I think—I hope—that one of the reasons that the letter resonated with our students is that it was very much aligned with how we work and learn together every day,” Mr. Lehman said. “And as such, we all were able to reaffirm what we value most as a community, even at such a challenging time.”
Ending on a positive note, the last lines of the letter reassure students that SLA will remain a safe and tolerant space and empower students to shape their own communities this way:
“We will continue to work and act in this way, each and every day that we walk through these doors.
Most importantly, we believe in you, our students—your ideas, your passion, and your ability to make the world a better place. Today, like every day, we hold out our hope that you strive to do just that.”
The letter’s simple closing poignantly sums up the staff’s message to students after Election Day 2016:
“Love,
The educators of Science Leadership Academy.”
