This year, Visual Arts teacher Eric Oldmixon coordinates the pilot of a new class for ninth-graders called LEAP, which focuses on developing group work skills.

The class, taught by teachers across departments, including Jill Mankoff, Giles Scott, and Hilary Schmitt, is an “inaugural step” for group work at Branson, according to Oldmixon.

“The goal of LEAP came out of a long discussion over the course of last year with a committee of folks,” Oldmixon said. “We realized students needed better level-setting opportunities to really excel at group work. With increasing enrollment, since students are coming from a wider variety of feeder schools, we want to make sure that everyone also has a lot of access to the same necessary skills.”

Specifically, Oldmixon has designed the program to emphasize the skills necessary for group work. 

“Group work doesn’t always operate the way us teachers would prefer it to. Students are not always comfortable holding one another accountable to different roles in group work,” Oldmixon said. 

Each letter in the LEAP acronym outlines core philosophies of the class. 

“L is about leadership as a collaborative act. What does it mean to be a leader in a group? When do you have to make important concessions for the betterment of the group?” Oldmixon said. The E is about this engaged learning that we always talk about at Branson — what does that really mean, to be prepared for class, to lean into class conversations? The A is action — really thinking about your individual actions; to be a good communicator, to be organized and reach out, and carry your weight. P is about leaning into the process of the work. How do we approach it with a greater willingness to take the risks that might result in moments of failure but much more personal growth in the long run?”

Through projects such as elevator pitches and logo design, the ninth graders have practiced working effectively in a variety of groups. 

“It’s a much more social and group-based class, which has been really nice, since it’s so different from a lot of my classes, and it’s been good to have projects based around the Branson community to learn more about the school. I’ve gotten to meet a lot of new people because we have randomly assigned groups,” Phoebe Disharoon ’29 said.

Corrina Bouligny ’29emphasized the connections she made through this class as well.

“I like that I can hang out with my friends and meet new people at the same time,” Bouligny said.

The class is designed so that one class of the week is an “action day,”while the rest of the week is designated for independent study periods. Oldmixon explained that, in addition to group work, he also wants to introduce students to Branson’s resources to set them up for success.

“We want everyone to know what tools we have and the people who are experts in those fields around campus,” Oldmixon said. 

Most of the ninth graders have found this aspect of the course very helpful in complementing the learning that they’re doing in their other classes. 

“What I’ve learned so far is about engaging with the Branson community and learning how to email teachers, be on top of my work and get important information,” Tara Penczak ’29 said. 

LEAP can also be a great way to meet with teachers.

“I like the Study Hall; I feel like it’s very helpful, and I like how teachers can come to you,” Ava Gordon ’29 said. “In free blocks, it’s harder to meet with teachers, while in LEAP you can ask teachers to come to LEAP to meet about your work.”

However, while LEAP shows promise as a new standard class for ninth graders entering Branson, many students wish that LEAP was more structured and well-defined, as they came into the year with little understanding of the purpose of the class. 

“I feel like at the beginning of the year I was confused about what the class was about. It felt a little random, and I feel like a better understanding of what we were going to do in the class would have been nice,” Disharoon said. Gordon felt that some important topics weren’t given enough attention, while too much time was spent on other topics .

“I liked learning about executive functioning skills. I feel like we only worked on it for one class, but it would be more fun if we had more of that and maybe less time on the logo design,” Gordon said. 

Oldmixon emphasized that LEAP is still being perfected as a class, and the goal is to continue to improve the program over the next few years, including involvement from students with specific passions in class curriculum such as Model UN. 

Oldmixon also mentioned plans of the involvement of other students with specific passions in the class curriculum: , such as Model UN members or teaching assistants to help students learn from their peers. Ultimately, Oldmixon wants to apply the core ideas behind LEAP to the classes students will take in the future, such as for all four years of high school such as Human Development.

“We want Human Development, cohorts, and this class to operate in collaboration to create a solid, broad, meaningful entry to Branson,” Oldmixon said. “We’re also looking to develop a capstone project for seniors in the next couple of years.”

Overall, through LEAP Oldmixon aspires to give students the confidence and resources needed to fully take advantage of their Branson experience. 

“It’s about putting all of these things together to effectively communicate your brilliance, as a group and as an individual, in order to get the most out of Branson,” Oldmixon said.