Meredith Hill

I grew up in Haverhill, Massachusetts, a city north of Boston, alongside the Merrimac River.  With a llama farm down the street, a horse farm next door, and a river backyard, I grew up exploring and loving the outdoors.  An early animal enthusiast, I had a range of pets including a dog, cats, rabbits, ducks, a ferret, snakes, parakeets, frogs, fish, and butterflies!

In elementary school, I discovered my love for performing and visual arts - something that has continued to this day. I loved to sing, dance, and act - and my first paid job was in 6th grade, when I performed as part of the children’s choir in the National Tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.  Throughout highschool, I continued performing in community theatre, studied singing at the New England Conservatory of Music, and performed as a Herald Square singer/dancer in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.  This led me to find a passion for teaching while I was in high school, and I worked as a theatre camp counselor, choreographed dance for local theatre companies, and led a summer dance workshop series.

At the small public school I attended in Massachusetts, I became frustrated with the lack of diversity of options, the limitations placed on students’ voices, and the close-minded attitudes of many students. In response, I co-founded a Civil Rights Team and Model United Nations in my high school - both of which became vehicles for educating younger students and peers, while creating advocacy groups for students to delve into real-world issues.

As New York City echoed the diversity of life and experience that I yearned for in high school, I attended Barnard College at Columbia University.  At Barnard, I sang in an a cappella group, performed in theatre productions, and volunteered with and coordinated Artists Reaching Out, a program to bring arts education to city schools without arts programs. Inspired by my work in NYC schools, I majored in theatre (directing), minored in dance, and was in the Education Program. During my time at Barnard I worked and interned in a variety of education programs in the city including Wingspan Arts, The Marymount School Drama Camp, Lucy Moses Summer Musical Theatre Workshop, Family Opera Initiative, Mott Hall II  Musical Theatre Program and elective classes, Manhattan School for Children, Morningside Area Alliance, and PS-125.

I came to CSS in the founding faculty as the sixth grade Professor of English Language Arts (and taught courses in Philosophy, Dance, Theatre, and Creative Writing).  Creating my ELA curriculum and playing a role in the development of the school have proven to be exciting adventures that mark CSS as a unique public school.  The passion of students and faculty to engage in trying out new ideas, gain new understanding through the learning process, and explore the limitless bounds of education have been nothing short of thrilling.

In my English course, "Through Many Voices: Discovering the Art of the English Language," I constantly search for ways to meet all my students' needs and engage students in meaningful understanding of language.  Understanding that language is a formative aspect of identity, I encourage my students to build strong comprehension and fluency of English while acknowledging and valuing their own backgrounds as meaningful parts of their education.  I aim to give students the tools of language as an outlet for exploring themselves and taking action in their world.

My early love for exploring the environment has remained a part of my life, and "sustainability" in many ways manages to find its way into my teaching life. In 2007, I co-created and co-directed the STAR (StudenT AmbassadoR) Program for student leadership, environmental stewardship, and engineering.  STAR (2007-2009) left CSS a few shades "greener" - with a rooftop garden, a worm composting system, a rainwater harvesting system, and a revamped scheme of school-wide recycling. In conjunction with our Food & Sustainability J-Term class, Prof. Bartges Ohana and I are working to start a school/community garden in Morningside Heights to continue engaging our students in local growing, cooking, and eating opportunities. This summer, I completed my Masters in Teaching Secondary English from Teachers College, Columbia University, for which my thesis research examined the use of principles of ecological sustainability in curriculum and school design - a project which has further inspired me to bring sustainability education to CSS!

One of my favorite aspects of CSS is the ability to keep my diverse range of interests alive.  At CSS, in addition to English Language Arts, my courses have included Philosophy, Creative Writing, Dance, Activist Theatre, Puppetry, Water & Sustainability J-Term, Food & Sustainability J-Term, and a musical theatre elective, “The People Called it Ragtime: Exploring Early 20th Century America through the Broadway Musical.”  As director of the Creative Arts Program and Musical Theatre Program, I have directed two CSS musicals, Seussical (spring 2009) and Once on this Island (spring 2010).  I look forward to this year's spring production (details to come!), as well as a new Advanced Theatre Lab elective and a creative arts class, “From Seed to Fork”!