A Day in the Life

Cardigan's day begins and ends as a community. For practical reasons, this ensures that everyone eats a healthy meal and receives the daily announcements and schedule adjustments, preparing everyone for the day ahead. But it is also a touch point, a moment to say "good morning" and "how are you?" making sure that each individual student feels seen and acknowledged for the role he plays in the community.

Cardigan’s academic program is designed to be hands-on and flexible, allowing for the freedom of movement and creativity. Science classes take advantage of the local biomes to observe first-hand the unique needs of different creatures and critters. Photography classes put cameras in the hands of students, giving them the opportunity to explore the world and express their thoughts and ideas in a visual format. Art, woodworking, and Gates classes take students through the creative process from concept to final product. There’s often no right answer, and it’s up to students to find solutions.

On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, students meet in their advisory groups. Students can receive help on homework, eat a snack, check in with their advisors, and visit the mailroom and school store. It’s a chance to catch up and take a breath in the middle of a very busy schedule.

Cardigan’s academics ask a lot of students, challenging them to think critically and creatively. Taking risks––from playing a solo in the school concert, to experimenting with a new art form, to solving a math problem at the front of the classroom––is okay because failure isn’t seen as an end but a step in a longer journey; there’s time to unpack mistakes and learn from them. And there’s always someone around to lend a helping hand—a teacher, a friend, an advisor. There’s an overarching sense that we’re all in it together, whatever the “it” may be.

Lunch, of course, means sustenance, food to maintain the boys’ energy through a busy day. But lunch doesn’t happen without the help of many hands. Cardigan’s leadership ethos involves service to others, compassion, courage, and performance. It’s not inherited nor is it a talent; it is learned and requires action. For many Cardigan boys it begins with participating in the job program––washing dishes, cleaning tables, putting away the food at the end of a meal. Students learn how to “do it right, do it the best that they can, and do it until the task is finished.”

As the sun sets on The Point, students and faculty gather one last time in the dining hall, catching up on the day’s events and celebrating the students’ wins. 

After dinner is a catch-all for activities and groups that don’t fit into the daily academic schedule but are nonetheless important to the boys. For some that may mean meeting one-on-one with a teacher for extra help or spending the last moments before sunset tossing a lacrosse ball on Marrion Field. For others it’s a chance to practice math problems with their math teammates or prepare for an upcoming performance in Humann Theatre. 

It’s a busy day, filled with both big and small lessons. Through Community Meetings, advisory, athletics, and their classes, the students receive a consistent message, challenging them to follow the Core Values––Courage, Compassion, Integrity, and Respect—and be engaged and contributing members of the Cardigan community. But it’s in the spaces in between––walking between classes, waiting in line in the school store, hanging out in their dorm rooms––that students get to practice what they have learned and demonstrate their commitment to each other and to the school. It’s a commitment that brings out the best in the boys and helps them grow into strong, independent thinkers who will no doubt become leaders and life-long learners.