On Friday, February 20, our 8th Grade students will participate in a Symposium, where we will discuss one of the pivotal texts in "The Great Conversation." We human beings are animated by a desire to know the truth about reality, broadly, and of human life, in particular.
Each year, the IHP symposium is a focal point of the Valor High School program as it enables our students to experience "leisure” in a particularly intense way. The 8th Grade students will participate in a Symposium on a half-day, allowing them to get a first glimpse of their high school Symposium experience. At Valor, we aim to educate our students for “a full human life,” and leisure is an integral part of such a life. As the German philosopher Josef Pieper points out, “leisure” is a kind of freedom, but it is not merely “free time.” Rather, leisure is a time in which one is immersed in what is most ultimate and important through a communal celebration of what it means to be truly human, namely, seeking truth together in a community of friends. In this sense, leisure is an experience of authentic freedom.
In the Symposium, your student, along with some of their teachers and Valor leadership, will inquire together into what it means to seek meaning in one’s life. The Symposium includes seminars with small groups of students, short panel presentations from our faculty with student Q&A, and a keynote address.
Please note these guidelines for your scholar to be well-prepared:
They only need to bring their copies of the reading, along with notebooks and their written responses (completed in their IHP class), which will be turned in at the beginning of the day.
Students should bring reusable water bottles.
Arrival and departure times for school will be the same as normal. Please note that this is an Early Release day.
Please ask your scholars about the reading before Friday and inquire about the Symposium after the event!
Symposium is going to be a memorable day! We look forward to this celebration and time of true leisure together.