Kylie Firmin '26
I have been going to Quaker schools for the past six years of my life, which rivals the amount of time I’d spent in secular elementary school and the brief moment I had spent in a Presbyterian preschool. At first, I didn’t fully understand how it worked, which led to me yelling across the room in my first-ever meeting for worship, and many more meetings where I was disengaged. Now that I’m looking back on these memories, however, I cannot help but be happy that I got to experience being in a Quaker school.
Growing up, I was raised in a church that found the spirit of God in clapping and dancing, passionate sermons, and vivacious music. I thought the only way to have a higher being hear my voice was to yell out for him every Sunday. But now I have Wednesdays when I sit in contemplative silence to have that same spirit simply come to me.
Something that I love about Quakerism is the core belief that there is light within all of us. There is no hierarchy, no one is above anybody else; we simply are. There is a great sense of relief in knowing that I am holy regardless of how I show up in life.
I find this same belief permeates through the way I am taught in my classes. I have been met with kindness, understanding, and love by my teachers, even when I am not doing the best in their class. It feels as if my light never dims, and it gives me hope that I am still capable of greatness.
To be honest, I am not a scholar of Quaker beliefs and values, I am just pulling from the knowledge that I have accumulated throughout my time in Quaker schooling. However, that does not change the fact that I would not be where I am today without a Quaker education.