As Concord Academy continues to change through years, students across all grades are looking to ground themselves in the community around them. A member of the CA community that promises to continue to strengthen CA’s approachable atmosphere is new Student Vice Head of School Kate Sahin ’24.
Arriving at CA in her sophomore year, Kate always knew that she wanted to leave a positive mark on the school. However, her path to becoming more involved in the community was marked by uncertainty. Initially hoping to run for an Environmental Co-Head position, Kate felt like her fear of public speaking held her back from her passion for leadership. “I was always told that being courageous is feeling anxiety in a moment, but purserving anyway,” she said. Hoping to represent the school, Kate set out to conquer her fear in the all-school election.
Having an opportunity to voice her opinions in front of a crowd at the Junior Leadership Retreat (JLR) last March allowed Kate to realize that she wanted to be more directly involved with fostering a sense of close knit community. Recalling back to speaking in group discussions and in front of her class, Kate felt that JLR helped her immensely in finding confidence in using her voice. “By then, I was inspired to run as vice head because not only did the position fit my skill set, but it would give me the chance to be in a larger part of school-wide conversations,” she said.
This newfound confidence gave her the opportunity to focus on what impact she could make on the students around her. Kate states that her main goal for next year is to keep up CA’s positive and inclusive atmosphere. “I feel like the younger kids are always looking up to the older kids, so I wanted to really make sure we [as the senior class] set a good example of being kind and showing them what CA is all about,” said Kate.
Kate’s passion for CA initially blossomed from the open-minded student body and in-touch faculty. “I joined my grade with only three other students [in my sophomore year], and immediately saw how special the community was,” she said. She added that the strong person-to-person relationships served as an immediate indicator that CA was something special. She elaborates, “I love exploring what you love to learn, and being fully embraced by the community right off the bat because that is something I had not experienced before.” These factors of CA only further pushed her to want to give back by joining all-school council.
When speaking on what she plans to do with her new position, Kate expressed a desire to add more social events throughout the year that are not limited to dances in an effort to bring the community together, especially during the most dreary part of the year—the winter. She also highlighted a potential craft fair in addition to revamping last year’s vintage market. Additionally, Kate expressed her wish to create more informal events, “[These are] opportunities where you can just drop in, have fun, and celebrate being at CA.”
When asked how she plans to achieve these various goals, Kate emphasizes creating an environment where everyone's voices are heard in an organized way. She plans to delegate tasks, set agendas, and focus on efficiency. But most importantly, Kate hopes to underscore the significance of working collaboratively and creating an atmosphere fueled by self-driven thinking.
With emphasis on kindness and collaboration, we can rest assured that Kate will certainly continue the positive CA legacy that inspired her over two years ago.