by Andrew lamprea’24
The C&E Department at St. Marks has been a point of contention over the past couple of years. Some believe that the department is too pervasive in student life. Others believe the opposite, that the department does not do enough to be an effective body. The point of this article is to, objectively, give information regarding how some members of the student body feel about the department. The selection of students represents a multitude of St. Marks experiences, and gives a wide variety of backgrounds to hopefully reflect how different facets of the community think. This article should serve as well to give insight into the intersectionality of these sects of the student body, showing exactly where we agree and disagree on this topic. The selection includes Diane Kwon, a passionate liberal and one of the student leaders of SM Politics. Her repertoire of C&E experience includes being a former pathways prefect, and one of the most prominent speakers on politics in the current senior class. Ezio Salimbeni is another prominent figure in the political circles of the school, standing on the other side of the ideological spectrum from Diane. He is one of the current leaders of the conservative club. Brendan Kelly is a current pathways prefect, and represents the more moderate breed of liberal within the student body. They give a compelling insight into the student aspect of the C&E office, as they currently work with them. Finally, we have Jeamilett Martinez, an avid critic of some of the more unsavory aspects of the school community, and co-leader of the Native American affinity group. Additionally, Rick DaSilva gave a compelling recount of his experience as C&E head over the past year and a half, and what it has meant to him. Noticeably, all of these candidates are VIth formers, chosen because they have had around an equal amount of experience with the C&E office before and after its major changes in the past years.
The questions I asked these students were as follows: What do you think is the biggest success of the C&E office? What about the biggest area for improvement? What, in your opinion, is the role of the C&E Department in the St. Marks Community? The students would have many different nuances to their answers, but also some common connections in their sentiments.
What do you think is the biggest success of the C&E office? What about the biggest area for improvement?
According to Diane, the biggest successes of the C&E office have happened in years prior. She thinks that this year especially, there has been a noticeable lack of communication between the office, and the students who are in a position to help them. She hopes to see the office improve on this failing in the future.
Ezio states that he does not see the effects of the C&E office very much from his point of view. He said, “I cannot name a biggest success or area of improvement from the C&E office, because honestly, I don’t know any effects they've had on the community at all”.
Countering Ezio’s criticism, Brendan explains that the biggest success of the department is normalizing having difficult discussions, and constructive discourse about current events that benefit any student who wants to learn. However, they also explain that “As an office, we are shooting too big right now. We need to stop treating symptoms, and start treating the roots of the issues we see here at the school.”
Jeamillett agrees with Ezio and Diane, saying that she wished the C&E department would address the actual issues in the school community. She thinks that the Office simply doesn't do enough to make an impact on student’s lives. She thinks they should have more community oriented events in the future. Her idea of a biggest success so far is the Wednesday morning talks done by Mr. DaSilva, though she notes that that policy does has some flaws.
What, in your opinion, is the role of the C&E Department in the St. Marks Community?
Diane thinks the C&E department should fit the role of a DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) figure of authority within the community. She thinks that the office served more of a purpose in years prior when this was its priority, and thinks the office’s new priorities leave some members of the community who relied on that DEI role vulnerable and without a real voice in the community.
Ezio sharply criticizes the C&E office and its role. He believes the C&E office serves a rather performative role. Its policies often do not accomplish a meaningful amount for the vast majority of the student body, but rather serve as bragging points for the school to say they are addressing the issues in the student body.
In contrast, Brendan believes that the C&E office should serve the role of educators for the student population. They would state that “I don't know how the rest of the school sees us, but I for one think we do serve that purpose”.
Similar to Brendan’s words about serving the community, Jeamilett believes the role of the office is to introduce communication and collaboration in the community, bringing the grades together. She thinks communication is the key to a healthy community.
In addition to the student perspective, Rick DaSilva, our current C&E head was also interviewed. Mr. DaSilva thinks that the C&E office has gone through a number of necessary changes in the past year and a half, with the eventual goal of completely transforming the office from its role in years prior. In contrast to Diane’s opinion, he thinks the responsibilities inherent with his position in C&E are more than just maintaining a DEI(Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion)-type office. He thinks that the point of the office is to strengthen the school community, doing everything in its power to maintain the past traditions that give the school its individuality and character, while addressing some of the more distasteful aspects of our history in a healthy manner. While DEI is important in his eyes, it strengthens only some branches of the community rather than the greater student body. DaSilva also supports the doctrine of optional meetings, saying that he thinks making events mandatory only drives the students away from actually wanting to participate in an active SM community. When asked the prior of the two questions given to students, Mr. DaSilva had revealing answers. “I see every new student who shows up to one of these optional events as an individual success” he said. The ultimate success then, is the culmination of all of those students who choose to actively be a part of our school community. Every instance of a student choosing to go to an optional breakfast conversation (held almost every wednesday), instead of taking a sleep-in, is a major success on the part of the C&E office in his eyes. With aspirations of creating a tight-knit and connected community also come some inevitable issues. The biggest of these, in DaSilva’s eyes, is communication with the students and student leaders. “I have had multiple instances of students judging me and the office based only on rumors they heard from other students.” he claimed, illustrating the apparent disconnect between parts of the student body and the reformed office.
These are but a few examples of different opinions, but they are varied enough to draw some conclusions from. First, there is a noticeable and undeniable lack of meaningful communication between the C&E office and its critics amongst the students. This has led to a number of misunderstandings and failings on both sides, and must be addressed no matter what direction the office goes towards in the future. Another conclusion that can be drawn from the polled opinions is that most students actively want to have those conversations about and with the office. There is definitely a desire on both sides to reconcile the differences within the school, and strengthen our community accordingly. There are issues, of course, with the current relationship between the department and population of the school, but these issues can be solved, and a solution is being worked towards. St. Mark’s is onto a good start, with both parties eager to talk to the other, and have meaningful discourses that will build our community into a stronger version of itself.