Beyond the Classroom
Student Life
Advisory Program
The recent partnership between The O’Neal School and The Social Institute is an exciting one. Throughout our advisory program, students will engage in discussions, growth, and development in social-emotional learning. This new partnership provides common language and information for our One Community comprised of students, faculty, and families.
Students in grades 5-12 are paired with a faculty advisor at the beginning of each year. This year, students in O’Neal’s upper and middle school advisory classes have started the #WinAtSocial program provided by The Social Institute (TSI). O’Neal’s partnership with TSI will help to support O’Neal’s families and students to navigate challenges related to social-emotional health, social media, and technology. TSI has a positive, high-character, gamified approach created with student leaders and researchers across the country and has been featured in the Washington Post, NAIS Magazine, and ISTE.
Designed uniquely by grade level, through this program, students in grades 5-12 will cover the following:
- Reflecting our values, character, and interests in our actions online
- Balancing our time and attention on tech with the people around us
- Surrounding ourselves with positive and credible influences
- Using social media as a microphone to create meaningful change
- Finding your own path no matter the pressure from others
The partnership with TSI allows the TSI team, which has experience in world-class athletics, education, social media, technology, and parenting, to stay in touch with the student experiences of its partner institutions across the country. TSI has partnered with organizations such as Ravenscroft School, Gaston Day School, National Cathedral School, Miss Porter’s School, U.S. Olympic Athletes, Duke Men’s Basketball, and The Women’s Sports Foundation.
The family support component of the program comes with a Parent Resource Portal where the latest social media coaching tips can be found. Parents can also stay ahead of trending apps, privacy settings, and technology.
From the program, the School hopes to generate the following results:
- Encouragement of positive peer influence among students around complex social and emotional challenges they face daily
- Amplification of students’ ability to make smart, positive decisions with devices, social media, privacy settings, and more
- Strengthening of parents’ and adults’ understanding of student experiences on social media and technology and their ability to coach students through proactive, ongoing education.
- Generation of conversations between students and trusted adults, and between students and their parents, around a positive use of social media and technology.
#WinAtSocial is the world’s first gamified curriculum that empowers students to navigate their social world - social media and technology - to fuel their health, happiness, and future success. This gamified and student-led approach to social-emotional education was created by The Social Institute with over 50,000 students at 60 schools nationwide. Students use devices (desktops, laptops, tablets, or smartphones) to play during homeroom, advisory, or health class. Trainers (advisors or teachers) host and facilitate the game. While students play at school, all parents and staff receive real-time updated tools in the resource portal and family huddles.
The O'Neal School
The O'Neal School admits students of any race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, citizenship, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other basis protected by law to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, citizenship, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other basis protected by law in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
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