Norton Family Center for the Common Good

Eric LaForest
Keller Family Director

Eric joined the Loomis Chaffee community in 2012 as a history teacher and Associate Director of the Norton Center. From 2008 to 2012 he was a member of the faculty of Chapel Hill-Chauncy Hall School in Waltham, Mass. A native Floridian and an alumnus of Davidson College and Boston College, Eric’s teaching interests include the interdisciplinary study of social responsibility, American cultural and social history, research methods, race in America, and the American Civil War. Along with his work in the Norton Center, he currently teaches CL US History and two senior seminars in the History, Philosophy, Religious Studies, and Social Science department. He is also the faculty advisor for the Shultz Fellowship and a longtime baseball coach. Eric was honored by the LC Student Council as "Teacher of the Year" in 2014. Eric was interviewed by the Harvard University Graduate School of Education and featured in the article Fostering Student-led Civil Discourse at the Loomis Chaffee School. Outside of school, he enjoys reading, brewing fine coffee, following the Atlanta Braves, and hiking with his dog, Whitman, a Spinone Italiano. He lives on campus with his wife and three children.

The Seminar in the Best Self provides 9th grade students with the time and space to encounter topics that are essential for their adjustment and flourishing both as adolescents and as members of the Loomis Chaffee community. This seminar emphasizes themes such as wellness, diversity, equity, inclusion, and the intersection of the best self and the common good. The 10th grade Seminar in the Common Good builds upon the Seminar in the Best Self and asks students to think more expansively about their roles and responsibilities in the communities to which they belong. This seminar emphasizes themes such as community engagement, leadership, current events, citizenship, diversity, equity, inclusion, and the intersection of the best self and the common good.

All topics in both seminars assist in fulfilling the school's mission to advance the development of students in mind, body, and spirit, and align closely with several of the school's other co-curricular initiatives such as the advisory program, the Conversation Credit series, all-school convocations, and Pelican Days. The seminars meet once per cycle and do not assess student work.
 

In the interest of enabling students and faculty to freely engage in conversation about social issues or world events, the Norton Center periodically hosts evening Dialogues in the Common Good, open to the entire school community. Dialogue topics range from specific world or national events, such as the tragedy of Ferguson and its context, to the role of social media in augmenting or threatening our relationships and quality of life. Students often facilitate these rich and respectful conversations on topics that they have raised, practicing the art of the “town hall meeting” while they explore their own opinions, beliefs, and their world.

The Norton Center is a gathering space for students interested in leading and realizing their own initiatives. The center has co-sponsored teams of students working on a diverse set of projects. Examples include: planning a Special Olympics event; conversations and curricula development around issues concerning sexual violence, divestment, and sustainability programs; and participation in events in support of Amnesty International and other humanitarian organizations. The Norton Center's relationship with the Student Council facilitates support for student-led projects. Each year brings many new opportunities and projects for consideration on and beyond the Loomis campus.

The Norton Center has enjoyed the privilege of teaming up with numerous departments and constituencies around campus. Examples of collaboration include: planning of a community service “un-conference," student volunteer training sessions, partnership with the Agriculture program, participation on the Climate and Inclusion Committee, co-sponsorship of SEEDS professional development training, advising with the Senior Projects program, guidance of the Hubbard Speaker Series, and shared initiatives with the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies.

The relationship between the Island and the world has been compared to the relationship between the "best self" and the "common good." Therefore, the Norton Center and the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies enjoy frequent and substantive opportunities for collaboration. These include programming for international travel experiences that allows students the time, space, and appetite for deeper reflection about their travels abroad. The Norton and Alvord Centers also collaborate to bring speakers and films to campus and encourage student discussions about their themes.

The Thursday Advisory Groups program aims to deepen community and inspire action through weekly conversation. 

Rooted in our school’s mission and values and drawing upon an equitable approach to teaching and learning, this course is designed by the Norton Family Center for the Common Good and the Deans of Students. 

We aspire to hold real and brave conversations among students and their advisors about the issues of the day and our relationship with those issues and each other.

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