Severn News

Upper School Students Sign On to Strengthen our Foundation of Trust

9/11/2017

Upper Schoolers donned their assembly dress last week for the first time this year and gathered in Price Auditorium for the annual Honor Code Assembly. After moving remarks from Upper School Head Ms. Bea Fuller, Upper School Dean of Students Mr. Marc Buckley, and Senior Class Vice President Victoria Decker ‘18, all new Upper School students and faculty signed the Honor Book, a symbol of their commitment to integrity and honesty within our community.

By the Students, For the Students, Our Honor Code Philosophy

Severn’s Honor Code is written for the students, by the students, with the goal of not only maintaining but strengthening trust within our community. At Severn we value trust as a vital component to our student’s growth and maturation. The Honor Code presents the students’ unified thought that a strong community relies on respect for work, property, and one another. Therefore we pledge not to lie, cheat, or steal. As we live our mission of character, conduct, and scholarship, the Honor Code is a reminder that character is the driving force behind everything we do.

“Without character, every word that follows in our mission would be an empty abstraction; meaningless.” — Head of School Doug Lagarde

Severn Upper School Senior Class Vice President speaks about the honor code. — **Victoria Decker** ‘18

“The strength and trust that are fundamental to Severn and the groups within are dependent on the students and faculty following the honor code and carrying it with them every day. We are responsible for upholding this tradition of integrity and doing what’s right even when no one is watching.” — Victoria Decker ‘18

Every new Upper School student signs the honor pledge. — **Darius Harrington** ‘21

“Once the honor book has been signed by all new members of our community, I aspire not to end our conversation here but but to continue to work together to make our collective understanding of integrity more united and clear. A concept that is more important now than ever before. As we work together, we can share ideas and debate positions. This can be a healthy dialogue of renewal.” — Ms. Bea Fuller

Severn Upper School students sign the honor pledge — **Sandra Eid** '21 signs the Honor Book as **Luke Marbury** ‘21, **Andrew Bond** '21 and **Peter Rozner** ‘21 look on.

“The Honor Code is at the heart of who we are as a community. For many of us, we’ve lived in a community with an honor code for so many years, that we simply take it for granted. I think that is the power of the Honor Code. We don’t think twice about it. Because we know we have a fundamental trust in each other — adults and students. It’s like holding a door open. It’s like coming in proper dress. They are things we take for granted and yet, they are the heart of civility that we all enjoy in this school.” — Mr. Marc Buckley

The Honor Code Pledge

At the end of the signing, Student Council President Trevor Marvin '18 led the entire room in a restatement of the Honor Pledge:

“We the members of the Severn community vow to uphold the integrity of the Honor Code which states that we will not lie, cheat or steal nor neglect the actions of our peers who choose to do so. We will treat ourselves, our peers and our community with the utmost respect.”