Hattie Saal

[00:04] HATTIE SAUL: Hi, everyone. My name is Hattie Saul. I'm 18 years old. Today's date is April 17, 2024, and I'm currently located in front of the Dalton school. So, what does the Dalton school motto, go forth, unafraid, mean to you? I've only been at Dalton for four years. Okay, Scooter. Perfect. Okay, so I have only been at Dalton for four years because I came new in 9th grade. But a lot of my. So a lot of my experience was shaped by, like, Covid and, you know, kind of hybrid learning. So I think go forth, unafraid to me means the ability to kind of, like, adapt to situations that you have a toolbox of values, lessons, ideas that you can kind of take throughout life to help navigate some of the trickier parts of your experience. So I think, in particular, that is time management, like Foley said, but also the ability to work well with others, to collaborate, to just be a good human, and not be afraid to pursue the things that you're interested in and passionate about and really hone in on what you want to explore with your life. So, yeah, I think go forth on afraid is a lot about, yeah, just doing the things that make you happy, finding a path for yourself that makes you feel independent, but is also allowing you to collaborate with others and, I don't know, like, be a part of a larger community.

[02:02] NONE: Do you feel like you have.

[02:06] HATTIE SAUL: Something.

[02:06] NONE: That you're passionate about that was shaped by being a Dalton that you could talk about a little bit?

[02:11] HATTIE SAUL: Yeah, I'm really passionate about, like, social justice work. And a lot of the classes that I've taken at Dalton have been really, like, helpful and conducive to, like, forming my knowledge about social justice. Like, in particular in history. I've loved history at Dalton. That's one of the things that I've loved about my time at Dalton has been the choice that I've had in classes. So my junior year, I was able to take a senior seminar type class, which was all about black radical theory and black thought throughout history. And that was really interesting to just have a perspective on some of these black thinkers and some different ideological standpoints in the black community. And then I also took an environmental justice class earlier this year, which I loved. So both of those sort of academic classes have been really helpful and just informative for me. But also, the clubs here have been amazing in getting hands on experience with social justice work outside of the classroom. I'm one of the heads of the Habitat club, so we do a lot for display, place people, and just, like, housing in general. And the club has kind of become more of, like, a general. It used to be like, partnering with Habitat for Humanity, the organization. Now it's more just about, like, getting involved in work outside of Dalston. But we recently just did, like, a paint day at a public school in Brooklyn to try and bring color and fun to that space. So that was really exciting and rewarding. But I think certainly, like, in terms of outside of the classroom activities and inside of the classroom activities, Dalton has given me a lot of opportunity to pursue social justice, but also just in, you know, like, being able to, like, speak publicly or interact with others, work with other people, like, hear other people, listen. All of those skills have certainly, like, been shaped at Dalton, and, like, will help me in the years beyond.

[04:18] NONE: Awesome. And speaking of the years beyond.

[04:22] HATTIE SAUL: Yeah.

[04:22] NONE: We've been asking people today, as you look forward to graduation in the next few months, is there anything you'd like to share about your future plans? It can be college related. It doesn't have to be just whatever you're hoping to do in future years.

[04:37] HATTIE SAUL: Yeah, yeah. I mean, I'm going to college, so I'm excited for that. I think, like, I have some sort of idea of, like, what I want to study, but each day I think it kind of changes somewhat, so I don't know if I have a clear path in mind. I think it's really important to me that the work that I do, I'm passionate about and, like, interested in, and, like, I can, like, support myself, but is also, like, doing something to, like, help other people and, like, better the world. So I'm still trying to figure out, like, if that's going to be, like, all of those things would be one career path, or if it's, like, a career path that has one interest and then, like, volunteering and other stuff outside of that, I don't know, sort of how I want to structure my life, but certainly, like, those three main goals are important for me to just, like, have in the back of my mind for the next couple of years and beyond.

[05:31] NONE: Awesome. Cool. Is there anything else that you like to add before we wrap up? We're about at six minutes.

[05:40] HATTIE SAUL: Okay. How long should it be? Should it be longer?

[05:42] NONE: It can be. No, no.

[05:43] HATTIE SAUL: However. Okay.

[05:45] NONE: If there's any other. I mean, you did a great job talking about your classes and your passion for social justice. It's amazing.

[05:55] HATTIE SAUL: Yeah.

[05:55] NONE: If there's anything. Any other classes you want to shout out?

[05:58] HATTIE SAUL: Teachers. Anything else? Yeah, I mean, I guess. Can I shout out. Use names. Okay. I'm just gonna shout out doctor Dunitz. Doctor Sarah Dunitz. I love her. She is a history teacher at Dalton but has been just kind of like my support system while I've been here. It was a rough couple of years, especially in the beginning and she was just always a friendly face and a fun person to chat with. I had her in my senior or spring semester of my sophomore year for my history class but also just got to know her as a friend and mentor. So she's great and really is also what makes Dalton. Dalton are like the teachers and administrative people that spend their days here and really want to dedicate their time to helping students. So she's just like one of many people that have made this experience really special and make the school so special. So thanks doctor Dunnett.

[06:58] NONE: That was perfect. Okay, so we're going to wrap up.

[07:01] HATTIE SAUL: Okay great.

[07:02] NONE: Wonderful. Stop the recording.