Williston has a new way to honor the motto of purpose, passion, and integrity.
Over the summer a group of Williston students and faculty members came together to create a new Honor Code. This code was presented to the public in one of our initial all-school assemblies. It was advertised as a way to keep our community honest and trustworthy.
Following this, students were advised to sign the new Honor Code in an advisory on September 14.
The Honor Code states: “I affirm the values of purpose, passion, and integrity. With every action I take, I aspire to make decisions that are in the best interest of my community and not solely for my personal advantage. I take responsibility for my own authentic academic work and refuse to give or receive unauthorized aid. By signing this pledge, I commit to being a trusted member of the Williston Northampton Community.”
In previous years the ethical expectations have been presented to students through the Student Handbook, which all students are required to sign before coming back to school in the fall. The Honor Committee explained that all students are highly encouraged to sign the new code of conduct, although it is not a mandatory task.
Dire Adeosun, a current senior and Honor Committee member, explained that by signing it, students would display their willingness to be apart of the larger community at Williston.
“When Ms. Vogel-Albanese reached out to me about being a part of the committee I knew that this was something I wanted to be a part of,” she explained. “By joining the committee or signing the code of conduct in advisory, it shows not only your teachers but also your classmates that you are an active member of the Williston community.”
Similarly, Hira Asghar, a senior border from Hershey, Pa., believes it is good for students to be involved in the new code.
“Í think it will have a positive impact on the Williston community because students will willingly follow and agree with what they believe in, rather than signing something just to agree with the school’s beliefs,” she said.
Although new to Williston, student-led honor codes are not foreign to many boarding schools in the area, including Deerfield Academy, Loomis Chaffee, and Cushing Academy.
Kim Evelti-Polin, Williston’s Academic Dean, believes the new honor code will have a positive impact on the community.
“I think that it will remind us of one of our schools values which is integrity,” she said. “It will help us keep this idea at the center of all we do.”
The Honor Code will continue to be a living document students are able to change according to the needs of the school.