This year, Tabor Academy has refocused attention on gender equality and providing equal opportunity for both female and male students.
Two years ago, Headmaster John Quirk implemented a system of co-heads of school so that one boy and one girl are selected from the senior class to lead the school each year. Subsequently, Student Council was reorganized so that each of the three positions has one girl and one boy. After achieving gender parity in the school legislature, the administration began inviting speakers to start conversations on the important issue of gender equality.
Tabor started by bringing in Michael Kimmel, a professor of Sociology at Stony Brook University, who has written extensively on the topic of toxic masculinity and the necessity of men standing up for women’s rights.
Kimmel came to Tabor to discuss the process by which boys become men, and how competition to be the “alpha male” causes men to engage in harmful social behavior, undermining the struggle for gender equality. He focused on how being a feminist is actually beneficial to men as well as women, and how men should stand up for women’s issues.
“Even though it was geared to guys, I thought everyone could take something from it,” said senior Claire Brito. “I liked that it made gender equality everyone’s issue.”
Senior Lulu Ward agreed, saying that she appreciated “how statistical Michael Kimmel was.” She noted “it was hard to argue with him because he had a lot of science in his corner.”
After the speech, Tabor students broke out into small groups to discuss the talk and how they think it applied to Tabor’s community as a whole.
“He did a good job of making it Tabor-specific. He talked a lot about boarding school mentality and school culture,” said Brito. “For a long time, I think feminism was something no one wanted to talk about or be associated with. I’m really happy that we’re working to make Tabor’s culture more inclusive.”
Brito is the leader of a female empowerment club on campus and has long tried to start a dialogue about women’s rights.
“It’s very heartening to know the administration is taking a stand,” said Brito.
After Kimmel, Alexis Jones, speaker and author of I Am That Girl, came to campus to discuss her personal story and to highlight inequalities in the lives of men and women, especially in their adolescence.
Jones addressed the females and males separately, focusing primarily on body image and self-esteem with the girls, and standing up and protecting girls for the boys.
“I really liked the intersection of both speakers,” said senior Theo Warren. “They both changed the way I think about feminism. I used to think it didn’t apply to me, or really anyone my age, but now I understand how important gender equality is.”
While for a long time, Tabor students stayed away from identifying as “feminists” or publicly discussing these social issues, this year the administration refused to keep the conversation quiet. These incredibly interesting and knowledgeable speakers were just starting points for the dialogue that has been happening between both students and teachers about the importance of gender equality in our community.
By Madeleine Gregory