Of all the Concord Academy traditions, the Junior Leadership Retreat (JLR) is one of the most mysterious. On one level, the annual event is exactly what the name implies. At the end of March or Early April, the entire junior class goes north to a pond in the woods for a full day and night of team building activities. At the same time though, the specific activities of JLR are shrouded in mystery.
“I’m excited, but I don’t think many people are. I’m mostly excited to go outside” said Calvin Johnson ‘25. Each year’s Juniors hear rumors from the class older than them about the JLR, but it’s never clear exactly what will happen. It may have been because of the rain during last year’s retreat, but the class of 2024 hardly went outside at all. Calvin’s excitement is rare in the Junior class. Many students feel ambivalent, or even downright annoyed when they see the Junior Leadership Retreat on their calendars.
The Junior Leadership Retreat is, all around, a lot of work for a small impact. It begins on a Friday evening. The entire class gathers their bags, containing exactly one change of clothes and either a sleeping bag or an entire bed’s worth of fabric, and files onto a bus. This bus drives north for an hour or two until they reach a little facility. Then they make their beds, and spend that evening and for most of the next day participating in activities like learning what their leadership type is and choreographing lip sync dances. There are no phones permitted (though some students always bring them). The focus of the JLR is on these activities, but they often do not get the attention they need from students. Zoe Sachs ’24 explained “[This is] controversial, but I liked the JLR. We didn’t do what the adults told us to do in our breakout rooms”. That being said, Zoe did think that the JLR was a good bonding experience.
I understand the purpose of the JLR, especially for my grade. The class of 2024 entered CA during the pandemic, and by the retreat, I still didn’t know the names of everyone in my class. The JLR did help me get to know a few classmates better. However, I struggle to believe that the logistical nightmare of bringing one hundred kids off campus for a single night was necessary for the experience. We could have learned the compass of leadership types in the SHAC and dodged the mess that was the roommate assignments. We could have choreographed lip sync battles anywhere, and spared everyone the bus rides.
The JLR is a sad instance of Concord Academy fumbling a good idea with poor execution. The complex logistics get in the way of a genuinely good concept, and as long as they do, the event will keep its negative reputation.
Perhaps this year will be a better experience, and the stereotype will begin to change, but no one can know until the JLR begins.