Owen Harrington, Staff Writer
March 8, 2024
Cold Monday mornings in the depths of winter can be challenging. You often find yourself exhausted and stressed for the week ahead as you make your way to school and into Lawrence Auditorium for assembly. While sitting in your seat, waiting for the starting bell to ring, it is not uncommon to question your decision to get out of bed early rather than get a few extra minutes of sleep, even if it means receiving your final assembly absence. Despite the difficulties that our first commitment of the week can offer, there is one mainstay of the Monday morning assembly that we can all look forward to: Head of School Cathy Hall’s weekly address to the school. Whether she shares an amusing anecdote from her life or talks about an important event affecting the broader community, these speeches always serve to wake up the school and prepare us for tackling the week ahead.
Following her recent talk in which she shared a Twitter chain that featured Elmo from Sesame Street checking in on his online fanbase, students and faculty members alike began wondering how Hall comes up with the topics of these speeches. In truth, the preparation for each of these talks varies significantly. Hall said, “I approach it in very different ways on different weeks…I do keep a running list of things that occur to me in the middle of July that I can use when the moment is right, but, at other times, something is happening in the world around us that I feel I need to address.” Hall went on to say, “I’m often thinking about the time of year and maybe what I’ve said in the past. I try not to have four heavy assemblies in a row, but I also try not to have four silly ones. I try to ask, ‘What’s the vibe right now? Is it just the week for kind of an uplifting message, or is there a need for something more serious?” This balance is vital to maintaining the value that these talks offer. There certainly are weeks when the school just needs to hear a funny story, but there are also times when we need to have a discussion about a far more serious topic.
When preparing for talks with more challenging subjects, Hall said, “If there’s something that’s happening in the world, it’s probably something the leadership team has been talking about, and I’ll seek counsel from them before getting on stage. I know to listen to others, who might give me a perspective on how things will be heard or seen, but then there are times when it’s just really my message and something I think is important to convey.” These talks are often a heavier way to start off the week, but they are extremely important for keeping the community up-to-date and talking about the world outside of Nobles.
Another challenge that Hall mentioned was ensuring that everyone feels represented by her talks on stage. She said, “I try to recognize a mixture of Middle School and Upper School clubs and Afternoon Programs…I want every student to see themselves in the success of the school and to see themselves on stage.” While that doesn’t mean that every single team and club will receive a shoutout during one of her talks, Hall works hard to ensure that everyone earns some recognition in front of the whole school.
Overall, these talks earn positive reactions from the student body. Christian Hess (Class II) said, “I’ve always loved her little tidbits, which make her more relatable to the students.” In reaction to the Elmo talk, Alex Cai (Class IV) said, “I think it’s so important to check in and see how everyone is doing, and I think Dr. Hall’s talk about Elmo really reminded us to do that more often.”
Even though getting up for school on a Monday can be difficult, it is great to know that we can always look forward to hearing a message from Hall, which will set the tone for the upcoming week and bring us all together as a community.
(Photo Credit: Ben Heider)
