As eighth grade students meticulously select their courses for their first year as a Centennial Eagle, they are faced with a rather unique dilemma. Choosing one’s schedule is a daunting task faced by every student entering high school, but Centennial has something that no other school in the county does: Humanities. These incoming freshmen are given the option to join this exclusive class, requiring a letter of recommendation from an 8th-grade teacher.
The Humanities (or “Hum”) is a four-year program that encapsulates both the English and the Social Studies curriculum. What’s special is that these subjects are tied to the social, political, and economic areas of life that are prominent in our world.
“One of the best parts [of Humanities] is the curriculum alignment. It’s an application all year long, taking things from English or taking things from Social Studies and integrating them into the arts. Everything that you’re learning is integrated,” Dr. Joelle Miller, principal, said.
The combined curriculum of English with Social Studies is incredibly expansive. The time periods and themes covered in one Humanities class are related to the other class. Reading ancient Chinese poems lamenting the fragility of life for a unit in English? Students will explore the dynasties of China and how their society and environment played a role in shaping this ideology. Studying the culture of America post-World War I? Students will read literature such as The Great Gatsby to explore further the lifestyles of the different social statuses within the country.
These subjects are additionally blended with theatre and art, another aspect that entices new students, offering another lens through which content can be studied. Up until 2023, students were directly taught once a quarter by the theatre and art teachers, but funding cuts put an end to that. Now, it is the Humanities teachers themselves who carry this instruction on. Studying and recreating various forms of art, such as the Japanese Hokusai paintings in Hum one, and various types of theatre, such as Shakespeare’s Macbeth in Hum two.
“I grew a liking towards humanities, like philosophy and the arts [in eighth grade] and then I just decided to do it because it’s a Centennial exclusive. I also actually didn’t know this before I joined but there’s a huge community about Hum. That was a really good surprise,” Justin Lee, a Hum one student, said.
The course curriculum is intricately detailed, intentionally crafted to cover a wide scope of domestic and foreign content.
Year one of Humanities focuses on ancient world history, studying the various views on life held by different cultures.
Year two narrows its scope to the American government and focuses on how our personal lives are intertwined with that which is political.
Year three expands its view, covering United States History and American literature throughout our history.
Year four comes full circle, finishing with modern world history and a more global perspective of literature.
Once enrolled, students travel with their peers all four years. That brings another dimension to the program’s student life, as it creates a tight-knit community that allows them to form and build strong relationships with the same people all throughout high school. The engaging environment is perhaps one of the program’s most defining features.
“A lot of my closest friends, I’ve met through Hum, and I’ve been able to build on a lot of relationships because it’s a really big chunk of your day,” Sophia Liang, a Hum four student, explained. “And every year it’s the same few people, which is really nice because you’re coming into the school year already knowing who you’re going to be with and it’s very comforting.”
There are many events throughout the year that help the students grow closer outside the school. From the back-to-school ice cream social and the “Humsgiving” meal to exclusive field trips to DC and Philadelphia, there are plenty of opportunities to have fun and foster friendships.
Perhaps what makes the Humanities distinctive, however, is the constant opportunity for students to share their own life ideologies with each other, while simultaneously gaining new perspectives on life from all over the world.
It is a program designed to educate beyond foundational grammar or textbooks that focus solely on the success of a paper test. The teachers and students within the Humanities encourage each other to connect their own experiences with the literature read or the lessons learned from history. For example, students have the opportunity in their sophomore year to incorporate their own life stories into the curriculum through the “Personal is Political” project, which explores the relationship between personal and political factors of life. Intertwining their personal experiences within their academic “political” lectures invites a more vulnerable classroom setting. This way, a nuanced touch is added to what is learned.
“The danger in especially socialized education is that it can turn into just memorizing facts. But one of the great strengths of our program is that it encourages people to look for those connections, to make those connections,” Jim Zehe said, the Social Studies instructor for Hum four.
The skills acquired through the class expand far beyond the high school environment. Throughout the four years of learning, the lessons presented accumulate to an overall goal: teaching students to think for themselves, while also relating and interacting with peers around them. It is a unique blend of independence and cohesion that creates a truly distinctive community.
“It is a joy to be around those who are intellectually curious. That’s why I’m in the program,” Lori Estes said, the English Hum three teacher.
The critical skills developed are used far beyond the classroom. In such a complex age, the ability to wonder and create is invaluable. And so the essence of the class lies in equipping and empowering students to be a light to those around them, ultimately inspiring change within a world that experiences much turmoil within the social, political, and economic spectrum.
“We have to recognize that there are forces in the world that are deliberately working to dehumanize people. And so the real and only work we have to do is to humanize each other and explore what that means for students,” Corey O’Brien, a Hum two teacher of 12 years, remarked.
“For me it’s built upon our curiosity, our ability to imagine other people’s perspectives,” O’Brien said, “to come to not just a tolerance, but an understanding in the hopeful pursuit of creating something new.”
