Living Well

The promise of Chatham Hall is to equip curious thinkers to lead lives of impact. In the same way that the academic program seeks to challenge and stretch all learners, our residential program is a critical component of a student’s experience at Chatham Hall. 

As we move through the first semester, we want to share a bit about our Living Well curriculum, which we are co-creating as the year unfolds. Living Well meets on Mondays from 1:45 to 2:45 p.m. in small sessions that are created with specific groups in mind.  The course design team is led by Josh Doyon, Director of Student and Community Life, with Nikki East, Director of Health and Wellness; Stephanie Tuttle, Director of Counseling Services; Tiffany Gray-Williams, Director of College Counseling and Dean of Inclusion; and Katherine White, Assistant Director of Student and Community Life.

Living together in community at Chatham Hall requires girls to practice making decisions and navigating dynamics with classmates, roommates, and folks in the dorm, the barn, and the playing field.  Living Well combines topics in women’s health, stress management, and public speaking with important conversations ranging from the importance of sleep, digital citizenship, time management, conflict resolution, consent, and mitigating rumors or gossip. The course is discussion-based and typically occurs by grade level since what a ninth grader needs is often different from what a Senior might need.

During our first Living Well sessions, we established and set dorm norms, created webs of support, discussed how to set healthy boundaries, and explored ways to mitigate stress in a fast-paced environment with many stress-busting options. 

We recognize that all adolescents are works in progress, and they need support in resolving the peer dynamics that inevitably arise in a small, intentional community. At Chatham Hall, we expect mistakes; we accept mistakes, and we work to equip the girls with skills to work to fix mistakes and learn from them. Role plays and multiple opportunities to revisit a particular conversation build competence and confidence. We want all our girls to be courageous upstanders with a moral compass that derives from our mission and our Purple and Golden Rule. Choosing courage over comfort takes practice. Girls must develop agency and adults must affirm girls when they use their voices. 

After Living Well classes, we often survey the girls for their reactions and suggestions, incorporating that feedback as we continue to design engaging lessons.

We are proud of this emerging aspect of our program; ask your daughter about Living Well.  And if you get an eye roll, we won’t take it personally.  Learning to live well is hard work!