Darlington School: Private Boarding School in Georgia The Finish Line: Guiding First-Year Boarding Students to an Epic Finish
Darlington School: Private Boarding School in Rome, GA
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The Finish Line: Guiding First-Year Boarding Students to an Epic Finish

Jill Babb | May 8, 2015 | 394 views

When I talk to prospective girls and parents about the first-year houses, I often spend most of my time talking about the first semester. I assure them that our first-year residents are offered guidance to help them through their first weeks of class, first shopping trip on a Dar bus, first roommate disagreement, first dance, etc. There are so many firsts in the first year house that we often don't spend as much time talking about the finish. 

I love the quote from Robin Sharma, "Starting strong is good. Finishing strong is epic." The first-year houses' job is not done until everyone crosses the finish line in EPIC fashion. What do the final meters of the first-year race entail?

The first step is exploring upperclassmen housing options. Cooper House girls are challenged to investigate Regester House  and Thornwood House. Who are the new house leaders? New head prefects? What is the personality of the Head of House? It is an EPIC decision – which house will they live in the rest of their time at Darlington? Each girl makes a thoughtful request, then we put the puzzle together and make assignments. 

The second step is participating in the Transition Retreat. Regester House and Thornwood House take their new Cooper girl residents on a day retreat. It is the first opportunity to bring the girls together. This year they traveled to a state park in Georgia and enjoyed bonding while kayaking, hiking and playing get-to-know-you games. The retreat makes moving to the "big girl" house a reality. 

Now that we have their new homes settled, we focus on preparing for their second round of exams and moving out of the dorm. It is EPIC for 15- and 16-year-old girls to sort through all their stuff, pack it up for storage and home, study for and take exams while saying goodbye to their friends for the summer. The key is prioritizing and organizing. We take one day at a time and one goodbye at a time.

Starting strong is good; finishing strong is epic. An epic ending creates a strong beginning for their second year. Our goal is to keep the cycle going.