Greenwich High School: With A Little Help From My "House" Friends

"Special"

That was the response from Headmaster Chris Winters when asked to describe the school in one word.

When the same question was posed to GHS Student Government President Corey Bloes, she responded with "opportunity." According to Bloes, the opportunity offered to students at GHS is "a definite strength" with "a club for every cause, a huge variety of classes, and so much is always going on with the electives. There is something for everyone."

Of course, with all of this opportunity not to mention 2,700 teenagers, comes a lot of pressure. Bloes admits, "students feel so much more pressure these days to do well. There is so much competition when it comes to school work and the college process that students feel too stressed out."

Director of Student Activities Diane Chiapetta Fox agreed with Bloes regarding the pressure stating that the students are " involved in academics, sports and activities.  Not only are they involved at Greenwich High School, many are involved outside of school. Some students work as well. I believe they are under more pressure now then we were in High School."

So how does a school and its staff respond to this pressure? By utilizing a "House" system to support the students academically and emotionally. Consider what Brenda Friedler, a long time member of the GHS Guidance Counselor staff, highlighted.  “GHS is student-centered. Consider how each House is laid out, with the PPS staff, Housemaster and Administrative Staff at the center of each House. It is inviting and welcoming to students and families.”

Having all the support centrally located means it is accessible and students are reminded every day when they walk into their House that they have someplace to go when they need help of any sort. But it is more than just physical access, it is about the entire system which has been established to work with students throughout the GHS career, preparing them for their lives and careers beyond GHS. Dr. Friedler, who is in her 38th year in Greenwich Public Schools with an impressive 26 at GHS,  pointed how “so many students return from college saying that they were not only prepared academically but socially as well because of the way GHS is set up."

GHS’s philosophy of “Freedom with Responsibility” summarizes the two main attributes the students must at times struggle with. From the physical freedom best characterized by the Student Center to the academic freedom of choosing from a course catalogue that some small colleges would envy, students have a variety of choices of what to do and where to do it. Not everyone is up to the task which is where the "responsibility" comes in; the school works to teach students how to make good choices and take advantage of all that the high school has to offer, which is where the support system again comes into play.

Recently, Schools Superintendent Dr. Sidney Freund and Mr. Winters announced changes to the existing system focused on both providing students with more consistent support during their four years at GHS but also increasing the level of academic focus for Housemasters. The reorganization focuses on driving resources to instruction and support for the students with three goals in mind:

1. To maximize administrative time devoted to instructional leadership including classroom observation, teacher support, and continuous review and refinement of curriculum;
2. To more proactively, efficiently and effectively address student discipline;
3. To better define and align high school administrative positions, duties and responsibilities.

Housemasters will now be "House Administrators" responsible for the administration and supervision of the teachers and students assigned to that House and/or program. A Dean of Students, who will report to the Assistant Headmaster, will focus on working proactively to ensure a safe learning environment for all students. The Dean will be responsible for student discipline and other administrative duties. Reporting to the Dean of Students will be four part-time Assistant Deans (one for each grade) whose positions are created with the intention of "looping with" the students for the duration of their time at GHS.

This reorganization enables instructional leaders to focus on instruction and separates out responsibility for student behavior and discipline - allowing House Administrators to concentrate their efforts on improving general classroom practices and focusing on course content as well as addressing the administrative duties of each House. In addition it aims to provide a different, improved and proactive structure for managing student behavior which should reduce infractions and increase overall satisfaction and performance.

In a school of 2,700 students, with its 2,700 individual talents, needs, aspirations and potentials to be tapped into and built upon, it is necessary to re-examine how students are supported and what structures should be put into place to best provide them with the guidance and instructional assistance to enable each of them to flourish. Freedom, responsibility, choices, pressure, opportunities, strength, a wide range of words but maybe that is what GHS is all about; there is no one word that can truly capture just how "special" a place it really is.