IBSC Better Boys, Better Men

St. Albans School is pleased to announce we will co-host two International Boys' School Coalition (IBSC) workshops on September 29 and October 6. Andrew Reiner, who has done extensive research and work on masculinity, will facilitate the two interactive workshops focusing on the development of a new masculinity.

Wednesday, September 29

4:00 – 5:30 PM EDT

Boys are growing up in a world that's radically different from the one their fathers knew. Success today both in and beyond the classroom requires self-awareness, self-restraint, empathy, curiosity, collaboration, and communication skills. Yet many parents, teachers, and coaches are still raising, teaching, and mentoring boys in ways familiar to previous generations: Guys don't cry; they have to handle everything on their own and always be “right;” they need to swallow back their feelings and always appear cool, in control; they have to be the top gun. This old masculine script isn't preparing boys for a new world. For example, boys are falling behind girls in grades, work ethic, literacy levels, and landing white-collar, entry-level jobs because the old script demeans intellectual curiosity in the classroom and working hard to achieve desired results.

Wednesday, October 6

4:00 – 5:30 PM EDT

Boys are in the midst of an unprecedented epidemic of emotional isolation, loneliness, anxiety, depression, and, increasingly, suicide. Statistics point to a growing crisis among boys and young men that was already surging before the pandemic. The epidemic has existed behind the curtain, but many of us didn’t know. Note this alarming statistic: Many suicides among boys and young men aren’t the result of chronic mental illness but rather the inability to cope with such stressors as breakups with girlfriends. Discuss and learn small but profound ways we can get boys talking in school—not as an alternative to receiving professional help but as a way to help them learn simple coping strategies, find the commiseration and support from peers they sorely lack, and start on the path to greater emotional well-being.