Alumni Return to Campus to "Give Back"
On Friday, March 8, 55 alumni from all over the country returned to Hawken to teach classes to the entire Upper School. This biennial event celebrates Hawken alumni and exposes our students to their rich and varied careers.
Alumni Give Back Day 2019 allowed us to showcase an extraordinary group of alumni. Their experiences and careers are incredibly rich and varied – running the gamut from a panel of veterinarians to a hand surgeon to sports management professionals to entrepreneurs to artists. Our students are truly fortunate to gain exposure to such a wide range of options, many of which they may have never considered. These alumni experiences have the power to open our students’ eyes to possibilities, give them a sense of what options in the real world look like, and influence their future career paths.
Head of School D. Scott Looney summed it up best when he told alumni that they helped open up a sense of the world beyond school for many students, giving them a taste of what adults who are talented and passionate about their craft look like. This modeling is essential for students who are in the process of trying to figure out who they are, what they can do, and what value they might add to the world. Our hope is that students saw themselves in these alumni and walked away feeling inspired.
An important by-product to this event is exposing our students to significant alumni connections. A new component to this year’s event was “alumni office hours” – a time for students to interact individually with alumni and ask questions they weren’t able to ask throughout the day. This component was added based on feedback from students after the 2017 event. Quite readily, alumni answered questions, discussed career paths, handed out their business cards, and offered mentoring opportunities – showing students the power of networking. One student walked away with a job opportunity with plans to start the following week!
We are immensely grateful to these alumni for taking time out of their busy schedules to give back to Hawken students in such a significant way. We couldn’t be more proud of each one of you and the marks you are leaving in the world!
An independent, coeducational, college preparatory day school, toddler through grade 12
Early Childhood, Lower, and Middle Schools, 5000 Clubside Rd, Lyndhurst, OH 44124
Birchwood School of Hawken, 4400 West 140th Street, Cleveland, OH 44135
Upper School, PO Box 8002 (12465 County Line Rd), Gates Mills, OH 44040
Mastery School of Hawken, 11025 Magnolia Dr, Cleveland, OH 44106
Gries Center, 10823 Magnolia Dr, Cleveland, OH 44106
Early Childhood, Lower, and Middle Schools, 5000 Clubside Rd, Lyndhurst, OH 44124
Birchwood School of Hawken, 4400 West 140th Street, Cleveland, OH 44135
Upper School, PO Box 8002 (12465 County Line Rd), Gates Mills, OH 44040
Mastery School of Hawken, 11025 Magnolia Dr, Cleveland, OH 44106
Gries Center, 10823 Magnolia Dr, Cleveland, OH 44106
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