Brooklyn private independent school

Leadership Opportunities

Group photo of Berkeley Carroll's Key Society members
 

Key Society

Berkeley Carroll Key Society members are here to provide prospective students and families with an accurate and enjoyable representation of the school. They strive to create a friendly atmosphere where prospective students and their families feel welcome, They educate visitors about BC's academic program, share insight into how active the school's student life is, and show visitors that BC students are more than just scholars. Key members are busy wherever they go: on the field or court, on the stage, in the studio, at NYU Poly or abroad. They always treat prospective students and their families like visitors to their home.

More information on The Key Society here!

Peer Leadership

The Peer Leadership program at Berkeley Carroll is a unique opportunity for students to have a direct and palpable impact on the quality of community life in the Upper School.

Meeting on a weekly basis over the course of a year as mentors with a small group of freshmen, high school seniors help ease the transition into high school by providing a forum where students of different ages and backgrounds can build friendships based not just on the respectful recognition of differences but on an appreciation for their common interests and goals.

The senior peer leaders provide classes that focus on building relationships, fostering collaboration, increasing self-confidence, developing problem solving skills and acquiring decision making strategies.

Senior Peer Leaders, who go through a rigorous application and selection process in the spring of junior year, begin their training with a week-long retreat before the start of school in August. During the school year the Peer Leaders meet as a group with the Peer Leadership faculty advisor and are observed and evaluated by the advisor throughout the year. The small group meetings with 9th graders, however, are led strictly by the seniors, who are ultimately in charge of planning and shaping each lesson. Each senior keeps a detailed teaching journal, makes weekly lesson plans, and leads demonstration lessons on pertinent adolescent topics for the rest of the peer leaders on a regular basis. The seniors act as role models to the freshmen, and use their enhanced leadership skills and problem-solving abilities to help maintain a respectful and safe community within the school.

Please read about our document on Peer Leader Selection Process to understand the process.

Student Government

In the Upper School, each grade has two elected representatives who meet with the grade dean to plan and discuss grade-wide events and initiatives. There is also a four-member elected Executive Council who meets regularly with the Upper School Director and Dean of Students. The members of the Executive Council, including the president, are 10th-12th graders who are interested in school-wide initiatives and in thinking about the role of students in the school.

 

Honor Council

The honor council is a student run organization in the upper school that has two main functions: to hear cases that involve honor issues and to help be a leader in creating a culture where academic integrity is a guiding principle. The council is led by two co-chairs who are elected by the upper school student body. The co-chairs have to have already served for at least one year in order to be able to run for this position and are responsible for setting the agenda for open meetings and leading the discussions at the case hearings. The other four student members are elected as grade representatives for each of the classes in the upper school. Two faculty advisors participate in hearings as well and act as liaisons between the administration and the students on Honor Council.