Guest Speaker Steve Cohen Offers Historical Context Surrounding Israel-Palestine Conflict
CSW welcomed historian Steve Cohen to campus on Wednesday, October 25, to lead an assembly presentation and conversation on the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict. In his interactive presentation, Steve offered perspective and context surrounding the most recent outbreak of war in the region. He began with a review of World War I and went on to trace the evolution of the Middle East on through today. After, students, faculty, and staff had the chance to ask questions and share their own comments and perspectives as the community continues to process recent events.
Steve is a senior lecturer in the History and Education Departments at Tufts University. He also has experience teaching at the high school level, including here at CSW. He was a program associate with Facing History and Ourselves for many years and has written articles about teaching controversial issues like Vietnam, the dropping of the Atomic Bomb, and the Holocaust. He also does projects for the PBS LearningMedia website on various historical subjects.
Inviting Steve to address the community is one of a number of steps the school has taken to provide support and education for community members in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel and the violence that has followed. On October 9, Head of School Lise Charlier released a preliminary statement to current students, parents/guardians, and faculty and staff. Shortly thereafter, Dean of Equity and Inclusion Rosanna Salcedo reached out to students and faculty to provide additional resources and support, offering open spaces for discussion and further processing. On October 13, as details continued to emerge, Lise shared a follow-up letter with the community. The next week, CSW held its first all-school assembly since the attacks, at which time Lise and Rosanna addressed the community in person, reiterating the school’s values, expressing empathy for the victims of the ongoing war, and offering reminders for wellness and self-care during this difficult time. Student advisors have been encouraged to check in with their advisees on a regular basis.
CSW—a gender-inclusive day and boarding school for grades 9-12—is a national leader in progressive education. We live out our values of inquiry-based learning, student agency, and embracing diverse perspectives in every aspect of our student experience. Young people come to CSW to learn how to learn and then put what they learn into action—essential skills they carry into their futures as doers, makers, innovators, leaders, and exceptional humans who do meaningful work in the world.