Between COVID-19, racial injustice, a volitile economy, and climate change, we all are experiencing a cascade of crises. And, our usual ways of coping with stress — hugs, gatherings, human connection — have been harder than usual to come by in the past few years. Teenage girls are especially vulnerable to this disequilibrium, piled on top of the societal pressures of adolescence.

Our job at Miss Hall’s School is to turn anxiety into action, commitment, and inclusiveness: to give young women agency in the world.

In this moment, we have:

• Elevated the importance of this work by naming Kristen Milano our inaugural Dean of Wellness.

• Bolstered each student’s Personal Team. Every student at MHS has a Personal Team made up of her advisor, Proctor, dorm parent, coaches, deans, and counselors who can be activated to enhance wellbeing and ensure her success. Proctors are trained to have private conversations from a place of care and compassion, and every adult on a student’s Personal Team is checking in more frequently these days to make sure students have what they need, from access to reliable technology to healthy downtime in their schedule.

• Put the power of digital platforms to work to support each other, to heighten awareness about women’s health and wellness, and to celebrate connectedness in the MHS community. During the Global Pandemic we spotlighted social-emotional wellness and lifting each other up and crowdsourced energy and resources to benefit our shared wellbeing.

• Scheduled humanely. With students in time zones around the world, the traditional, six-block school day was not going to work during COVID lockdown. In 2021, we offered a new daily schedule — six, five-week terms, with two classes per term — that allowed students to dig deeper into their work, yet provide more time for access to teachers and advisors, College Counseling, ensembles, essential coalitions, and clubs. Each student’s schedule also included a “What I Need,” (WIN) segment, built-in time that is still in place for students to use for, well, whatever they need — extra help, time with an advisor, or a walk around campus. The result? Learning at MHS did not stop.

• Doubled down on women’s health education for all students. As part of the “me-to-we” curriculum of our signature Horizons program, MHS 9th-graders benefit from no fewer than 17 sessions on mental health, mindfulness, nutrition, and sexuality. Our greenhouse programming always incorporates elements of social-emotional learning, and this year, we are redoubling efforts to slow down and disconnect from the fast-paced, uncertain nature of our current experience.

• Turned up the volume on counseling opportunities. We have two excellent counselors at MHS who bring outstanding mental health expertise and reach out in concerted ways to students, taking under consideration individual elements of wellness — exercise, eating, screen time, spirituality, and interpersonal relationships.

• Supported student-led wellness projects through Horizons. On-campus Horizons internships offer opportunities to gain knowledge in various areas, including health and wellness. In the past few years, seniors have interned with the MHS Health Services Team, which includes the School Nurses and Counselors. Along with learning about careers in health services and following developments in the ongoing pandemic, they are exploring ways to provide physical and mental health and wellness education in terms of COVID-19 and in advance of the seasonal flu season, with an eye toward keeping everyone physically and mentally healthy. Other Horizons students, meanwhile, developed a Meditation Garden on campus, at the intersection of Witherspoon, the Library, Centennial Hall, where they envision a tranquil, immersive space for raking gravel patterns, adjusting rocks, and setting cairns.

Keep your eyes peeled to your inbox and social channels for more stories of amazing, self-aware young women of Miss Hall’s School who know how to support one another!