Tragedy averted

A severe health problem with her mother provided Julia ‘12 the opportunity to get closer to her father and to bring the family together. She suggests that we not wait until hard times to appreciate the ones we love. Hear her here.

A River Runs Through It

Mrs. Hunter shared her passion for fly fishing. Check out her inspiration speech on the videos page.

Step out of your comfort zone

Pam Skripak ‘80, director of seminar, tells of a missed opportunity to get to know someone new because she was not comfortable speaking to someone who seemed so innately different from her. She encourages students to step outside their comfort zone, get to know new people, and be more curious about others. Hear her here.

Sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll

This morning’s inspirational speaker was Bob Naeher, who spoke with students about the 1960s, Woodstock, and the hippie movement. He hopes today’s young people with aspire to change the world, save the environment, and attain world peace, much as those of his generation tried, but to “avoid the bad hair and silliness.” Hear him here.

Live in the moment

Olivia ’09 tells the story of being thrown from a horse during competition and how she put her anger aside, got back on, and finished the course. No, her message isn’t about getting back on the horse. Instead, she encourages students to live in the moment, not just to be spontaneous and irrational, but to [...]

The only thing you can count on is change

Kayla has changed her hair color and length many times, not because she doesn’t like her hair, but because she embraces change. When her class graduates in June, they will experience big changes in their lives, and Kayla encourage everyone to adapt to new situations, look back on their time at Emma without regrets, and [...]

Who was Jack Betterly?

Science instructor Jon Calos spoke to students at this morning’s inspirational speech about how the four-year high school cycle limits students’ abilities to really get to know one another. He encouraged students to know their own stories and pass them on so that we all become a part of Emma Willard history. Hear him here.

Making a difference—no matter where you are

Mimi tells students about her trip to Kakamega, Kenya, where she volunteered at the Friends Care Center orphanage summer camp. Despite traveling so far from home, Mimi learned that we can be effective citizens by bringing vision to our own situation, breathing life into our current environment, and making where we are right now a [...]

Shakespeare competitor goes to NYC

Each year since 1983, high school students have explored Shakespeare’s language through the National Shakespeare Competition, sponsored by the English-Speaking Union. Students and teachers from 60 ESU branches compete by performing Shakespeare’s monologues and sonnets at the school, branch, and national levels. This year’s EWS representative is Aaryn ’12, who competed and won at the [...]

Ambassador for American poetry

 
Today’s assembly speaker was Tony Hoagland, author of three volumes of poetry: Sweet Ruin, winner of the Brittingham Prize in Poetry, Donkey Gospel, winner of the James Laughlin Award of The Academy of American Poets, and What Narcissism Means to Me. He has received grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment on the Arts, [...]