Twenty-four years ago, Ms. Hodin began her career at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, teaching Modern World History and Psychology. About nine years in, she took on the crucial role of Coordinator of Safe School Initiatives. While she stepped away from teaching Modern World History to fully embrace these new responsibilities, she has continued to teach Psychology throughout her entire time at LS. Now, after 24 years of dedication to the LS community, she is retiring, leaving a legacy of empathy and action.
Ms. Hodin has a deep appreciation for psychology. Furthermore, she advocates for the subject, noting its value for upperclassmen who are making their own decisions: “it’s really useful to come up with different theories and understandings for why they make the decisions that they do.” She further explained, “I feel like it’s a victory when students talk about psychology outside of class.”
When asked about her career and time here at LS, Ms. Hodin acknowledged the escalating pressures on both teaching and learning. She noted how drastically many aspects of education have shifted. For example, during the tragedies of September 11th, 2001, the year before she started at LS, she recalled everyone gathering around one TV on a cart to watch the news. Today, the influx of information is constant and immediate. “I remember thinking, teaching has never been harder. That was, like, 10 years ago,” she reflected. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, “teaching had never been harder. Then came cell phones and social media. And now AI.”
Despite these evolving challenges, she is continually impressed by the LS educators. She appreciates how our educators maintain a high level of academic challenge while remaining incredibly positive and supportive of one another. It is “positive demanding,” she described, a term/theme she has taken from the LS girls’ rugby team, which she helps Ms. Greeley coach.
For the last 15 years, Ms. Hodin has displayed her positive energy and commitment in her role as the Safe Schools Coordinator. Her work falls into three buckets: Peer Mediation, Violence Prevention, and Respect for Human Differences.
In the world of peer mediation, Ms. Hodin trains and oversees students to help their peers through structured conversations, viewing conflicts as opportunities for growth. “Conflict is natural,” she explained. The peer mediation program “is a resource for all people to be put in the driver’s seat to resolve their own conflicts.” (For a deeper look into peer mediation, read here: https://theforumls.net/2654/features/2654/)
Her violence prevention work focuses heavily on social-emotional safety, while Mr. Elenbass is in charge of the physical safety at LS. You might hear Ms. Hodin on the loudspeaker leading a mindfulness activity after school-wide safety drills. Following the tragic murder of Wayland High School student Lauren Astley 15 years ago, Ms. Hodin was moved by Malcolm Astley’s call in The Boston Globe for relationship education. Consequently, she helped restart the Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) club at LS. While the group is well-known for actively running the 10th-grade healthy relationship assembly and the 12th-grade “Courage to Care” assembly, the student leaders also do a tremendous amount of everyday work to promote healthy relationships and equip their peers with the skills to identify and intervene in unhealthy dynamics.
The third bucket, Respect for Human Differences, focuses on fostering community and inclusion. Ms. Hodin works closely with the students in the Metco program and Students for Social Justice. She helps facilitate a Tuesday lunchtime drop-in space for students of all backgrounds to safely share their experiences. Whether she is organizing large assemblies or working personally with students, her goal is to ensure all student voices are heard and uplifted.
Across all these initiatives, she works to empower students. “I view my most important work as cultivating leadership in students,” she stated, “I get to help students access the best part of themselves.” This appreciation for student initiative is evident in her love for seeing young people take charge, much like the girls’ rugby team rallying themselves at halftime with incredible heart and drive. Observing their raw energy, she noted, “I love being a part of fired-up students.”
As she looks toward the near future, stepping away from the LS community will be a bittersweet transition. “I’m really going to miss this job when I leave,” she shared. “It’s going to be hard to say goodbye to working with so many inspirational young people.” While she may be ready to move on to her next chapter, her daily presence will truly be missed by students and colleagues across the many spheres she has influenced.
On the other hand, she is excited for retirement, looking forward to hiking, biking, gardening, spending time with her family, and finally sleeping in. Her parting advice to the student body serves as a perfect summary of her career and character:
“Never underestimate the power that each of us has to make the world an easier place. A better place… Never underestimate the power of kindness.”
