Tiger Unity Summit Dives Into Conversation and Community

The 2026 Tiger Unity Summit successfully navigated the challenges caused by a massive winter snowstorm to lead the entire Thayer community in an exploration of engagement and belonging. 

The weeklong summit, initially scheduled to begin Feb. 23 but delayed two days because of nearly three feet of snow, featured activist and educator Loretta J. Ross; the 2022 MacArthur fellow shared with students her ideas of bringing people together in difficult but necessary conversation rather than separating them via cancel culture. 

“I think it was really impactful given the condensed timeline,” said Dean of Engagement & Belonging Matt Ghiden, who praised Ross not only for engaging so thoroughly with students but for her flexibility in dealing with the improvised schedule. 

On Feb. 25 Ross — a professor at Smith College and author of the book Calling In: How To Start Making Change With Those You’d Rather Cancel — addressed both Upper School and Middle School students. She discussed what she calls “The 5 Cs Continuum” — Calling Out, Canceling, Calling In, Calling On, and Calling It Off — and gave off, at least to one student Ghiden spoke with afterwards, “grandma vibes,” deftly blending humor and compassion in her discussion of extremely serious and sensitive topics. Ghiden himself summarized the tone of that morning when he quoted a message that Ross gave students: “You can say what you mean, and mean what you say, but you don’t have to say it mean.” 

Ross was a highlight of the third annual Tiger Unity Summit but only one part of the weeklong event. Assistant Director of Engagement & Belonging Oliva Pena noted that more than two dozen student-led and faculty-led workshops took place during the summit; the varied workshop topics, all chosen by the workshop leaders themselves, had something for everyone, ranging from ceramics to aerial yoga to the radicalization of the internet. 

“The students got to engage in something new,” said Pena. 

On the summit’s final day, Upper School students attended an assembly celebrating Black history and then broke into their respective advisories for a deeper dive on Ross’ work. 

Ghiden expressed gratitude to the student bodies in both school divisions for their attention and engagement during the difficult weather week. Pena echoed those comments but added her appreciation for the faculty and staff who not only adjusted their schedules but brought forth their own perspectives and energy via the numerous workshops. 

“It’s great to see the community come together,” said Pena.