This year’s I-Tri class set records for most participants (18), most girls (eight) and most projects (six over the course of 10 weeks).

“That is a lot of time and a lot of work,” Jen Solomon, the associate director of innovation and a science teacher, said to the faculty, parents, and friends gathered for the I-Tri final presentation and wrap-up on Wednesday, May 24. She applauded the students for their perseverance. “Some of you I have known for four years … some of you four months. … It is amazing to have had any amount of time with these kids that are really special.”

I-Tri students step away from their regular classes and daily schedule in their final term to tackle real-world challenges and offer innovative solutions to problems faced by local businesses and non-profit organizations.

The final project of the term involved the Loomis Chaffee Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing. The charge to the students was to think about the integral parts of their experience at Loomis that helped them become who they are and consider how to best share those aspects with the rest of the community. They came up with multiple ideas, many of which included recommendations for sharing their experiences on the school’s website.

Students in the I-Tri learn many skills, and in response to a question from the audience at the end of Wednesday’s presentation, this year’s group identified some of the lessons and skills they learned:

Innovation. Teamwork. Collaborating. Communication. Confidence. Learning about themselves. Trusting the process. Brainstorming and sharing ideas. Public speaking and presentation. Working in a group. Letting others do some of the work while also taking initiative. Realizing it’s OK to go back to the drawing board. Holding themselves accountable.

All of this was happening in the Pearse Hub for Innovation, known to all as the PHI and known to many students as a home away from home and a place, among many on campus, to explore their passions.

This year’s I-Tri students: (all seniors)

Nathan Amani-Luiru; Jake Berman; Quincy Briggs; Charlie Chen; Maeve Dowd; Fernando Flores; Ömer Kizil; Sofia Mansilla; Avery Martin; Mattie McCann; Malcolm McPherson; Savannah Mills-Hall; Colin Sim; Jaden Small; Ashley Valdez Rodriguez; Nell Williams; Ethan Wood; Mattie Wright

Project partners:

Unknown Clothing, New Britain, CT

Cinder+Salt, Middletown, CT

Gentle Bull Shop, Hartford, CT

Ruthie Davis ’80, New York City, NY

Balebe, Windsor, CT

Walk Worthy Brands, Windsor, CT

Loomis Chaffee Strategic Communications & Marketing