The Commons Work Program
How do we share work at the Mountain School?
What kind of work does it take to sustain a community? Who does what? How is it done? Who decides? And why does it matter? These questions are fundamental to any community, regardless of how small or large. Answering these questions is an opportunity for us to reflect and reaffirm the values in our mission and program goals. Every semester, teachers and students alike are collectively responsible for making this place work by coming up with answers to these questions.
At the Mountain School, taking care of place is a daily communal responsibility. The Commons Work Program allows students to experiment with their relationship to work by rotating through tasks that are essential to sustaining the school.
It takes quite a bit of work to keep this place running! Students take on all sorts of jobs during their time here: cleaning the dishes and restocking the bathrooms, feeding the sheep, watering the seedlings, presenting the daily news, splitting wood to feed the boilers, bringing in and processing the harvest, meal prep, and so much more.
“Work” takes on a new meaning at the Mountain School. By the end of four months, you might find it deeply satisfying to weed a bed of greens or mop a particularly muddy classroom. By working together to achieve shared goals and solve collective problems, we build mutual trust and deepen social bonds. Read on to learn more about different parts of the Commons Work Program.
Chores
Each student will rotate through a variety of chores. These tasks are essential to the functioning of the school and farm, such as feeding the boilers or taking out the compost or watering the greenhouse plants. In addition, all students participate in twice weekly campus cleaning times, where students and faculty work together to clean classroom and communal bathroom spaces. Sometimes a solitary project and sometimes a group undertaking, chores are an excellent way to learn how to take care of a place.
Dish Crew
At the beginning of the semester, every student is assigned to a dish crew team with 4 or 5 teammates. Dish crews are responsible for washing dishes and resetting the kitchen for chefs to work comfortably and safely as they prepare our delicious meals. You’ll have dish crew 2 or 3 times a week and become an expert in no time at all. Extra points for building an excellent dish crew playlist!
Commons Work Period
Three afternoons a week and Saturday mornings, students participate in the essential work of the school: farm, woods, kitchen, facilities, and administration. Work assignments rotate students through different areas of operation and groups lead by faculty, giving us all a chance to get to know what it takes to care for this place and to get to know each other.
Farm Day
One day of the semester, in mid-September or late May, we will suspend our usual schedule to spend a full day bringing in the Harvest or preparing the farm for the upcoming season, depending on the semester. Everyone is involved! It's a joyful, sweaty, challenging, and deeply satisfying ritual of the semester.