The Todd Allen Phillips Center for Medical Sciences (CMS) at Godwin is undoubtedly a rigorous, prestigious center. Students participate in specialized science classes unavailable to other students, such as organic chemistry or anatomy.
However, academic standards often lead students into unhealthy, competitive habits that can divide them. A group of center seniors aims to build a sense of community in the center through a new competition: Center United.
This new program was created by four seniors in the center: Aarushi Nayak, Yana Shah, Madison Mussatt, and Violet Janes. Together they have collaborated to organize activities and incentivize students with prizes to reunite the center and create a healthy environment for students.
When asked about the purpose of the competition, Madison Mussatt said, “it takes some of the hyper-competitive energy that was going on in the center and focuses it on making a more fun community where students help each other instead of tearing each other down.”
The Center United competition is a series of events and opportunities, including hallway decorating, center football, and teacher trivia, where students can earn points for their class. There are various checkpoints throughout the competition where the class with the most points will receive special prizes.
Additionally, each grade has eight captains who are in charge of encouraging students to participate. There are two grade captains assigned to each of the four major categories within the competition: center spirit, arts and decoration, Godwin pride, and events and participation.
The competition aims to bring the center together, however, there have undoubtedly been obstacles while attempting to bring it to life. A significant issue has been student participation, with Yana Shah stating that “it is hard to encourage upperclassmen to participate because they’re not used to the competition and often have other things going on.”
Although it can be hard to encourage participation, Center United is a program that could heavily benefit the center and the students within by promoting friendly competition and teamwork between peers.
“It’s helping our grade come together” and “have fun in the name of center spirit,” said Aarushi Nayak.
A competition focused on celebrating center pride can create “more appeal” as students “aren’t just focused on academics but also participating in fun activities together,” said Mussatt.
It is important to break the stigma that the center is solely focused on academic merit and scores in a gradebook. Students who rely too greatly on academic competition are more likely to become overwhelmed and isolated in a community that should feel uplifting.
Through incentivizing students and organizing team-building activities, the senior students organizing the competition are hopeful that the center can evolve into a more inclusive environment.
