Featured with friends seminary
"First graders explored World Quaker Day with Lower School teacher Calliope, a practicing Quaker. She introduced Meeting for Worship as a global practice and shared an illustrated book about Meeting that includes text in te reo Māori, the Indigenous language of Aotearoa New Zealand—a bridge between World Quaker Day and the week’s observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Students then considered Quakerism around the world, noticing how each Meetinghouse reflects its community while holding the same center. They reflected on this year’s World Quaker Day theme, Love Thy Neighbor, and completed a brief reflection inviting them to notice what silence feels like and how it helps them listen for the Inner Light."
- Friends Seminary 2025 publication, photo credit Kyla Campbell
"World Quaker Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of October. This year’s theme, developed by Friends World Committee on Consultation during the August Plenary in Johannesburg, South Africa, was ‘Living the Spirit of Ubuntu’. Ubuntu is a term from the Nguni and Bantu languages of Africa which mean the “interconnectedness of humanity” or “human generosity.” Ubuntu is most commonly translated as, “I am because you are.”
Practicing Friends, Dot Cates and Calliope George, led a Meeting for Worship with the Lower School, centering their message around Peace. They read excerpts from What Does Peace Feel Like by Vladimir Radunsky after sharing a brief overview of Quaker history, World Quaker Day, and their Quaker connection.
Calliope also led a semi-programed Meeting for Worship for the Upper School. Inspired by her own upbringing in a semi-programed Meeting in North Carolina, she introduced World Quaker Day through a lens of another way to worship. Her prepared message was grounded in her experience attending Friends School and following Quakerism around the world."
- Friends Seminary 2024 publication, photo credit Kyla Campbell
study at Bank Street
While earning her Masters of Science in Childhood General & Special Education at Bank Street College of Education in New York City, Calliope is connecting Quaker Education traditions with the possibilities of an AI influenced future and a hope for deeper empathy in our world. Her work uplifts place and project based learning and foundational inquiry in lower elementary grades to nurture student-centered curiosity, creativity, and courage.
