On Sunday, April 2, the school hosted the annual BLISS (Black Link of Independent Schools Summit) conference. The goal of the conference is to allow African American students from different boarding schools to come together to speak about their experiences. This year, the Summit was organized by Sydney Jean ’23 and BAHSA head Richie Mamam-Nbiba ’23. Paricipating students from various New England boarding schools came the night before. Many enjoyed a dance hosted by BAHSA.
The opening ceremony offered student remarks and performances. Following that, students chose from eight workshops. Abigail Gugsa ’24, Emilie Clitus ’24, and Leanna Wells ’23, ran a workshop called “The Privileged Poor,” which was modeled after Harvard professor Dr. Anthony Jack’s speech at the school on February 17. Participants watched Jack’s Ted Talk and discussed the privilege of attending boarding school and how that will set them up for college.
Lily Yawand-Wossen ’24 participated in this year’s BLISS conference by organizing a poetry workshop, which focused on writing about experiences in boarding school. She said, “It was great to interact with others with similar experiences as me, who are also trying to figure out their identity.”
