A month into the school year, Charlotte Latin students and teachers have grown accustomed to the rhythms of the new “waterfall” schedule, which rotates classes in the Upper School and Middle School through different times of the day, and have taken full advantage of the Community Time period, whether they’re attending club meetings or tossing beanbags with friends on the Quad. One feature is still rolling out: the “Hawk Block,” which happens on each “Blue Day,” approximately every two weeks.

Dr. Sonja L. Taylor, Associate Head of School, explained, “We came up with this block of time as part of our schedule because we needed a way to incorporate important supplementary programming without interrupting academic time.”

The first Hawk Block of the year featured Convocation, but Hawk Block started in earnest this week with a range of presentations, tailored for the needs of different years: 12th graders participated in Launch, the ongoing program designed to prepare them for life after Latin; ninth, tenth, and 11th graders filled Thies Auditorium for a session about leadership; and eighth grade students received an introduction to financial literacy.

“It isn’t meant to feel like class, but it is meant to be a learning opportunity,” said David-Aaron Roth, Director of Student Leadership Development. 

Hawk Block is also designed to provide time for Latin teachers to plan and meet and prepare for class, and so the Admissions staff led the financial literacy sessions while the Advancement team handled the leadership meeting. That meeting featured a panel discussion of five Latin alumni (Lauren Langley ’20, Nick Ray ’06, Patrick Rivenbark ’02, Cameron Hall Wagner ’90, and Jack Zollicoffer ’14), discussing ways in which they had applied principles of leadership in their own lives. It also introduced the attributes of the Portrait of the Latin Leader (Curious Learner, Dynamic Communicator, Conscientious Thinker, Humble Collaborator, Courageous Advocate, and Resilient Navigator) to Upper School students, challenging them to consider how confident they felt about each attribute in their own daily lives.

Roth added, “You don’t have to have your purpose identified in tenth grade. What we’re encouraging is recognition that a life of purpose is a continual opportunity to reflect on how you are living your life. We want to create an environment where everyone can see themselves in leadership: finding joy, creating group momentum, standing up for others.”