Over the past 2 years, I have been the host of High School Conventus at The Young Mens Leadership Academy, and as I get ready to move on to the next chapter of my life, I feel it is important to highlight one of the most special pieces of our schools culture.
Conventus Fratrum, or Meeting of the Brothers is a weekly tradition at the YMLA, but from an outsider looking in, us saying Conventus may seem a little weird, because what even is a Conventus?
Conventus was conceptualized by Mr White and Coach Tate in the early days of YMLA after Mr White was sent to other leadership academies around the country (Eagle Academy in New York, and Barack Obama Leadership Academy in Dallas) and saw their assemblies where students received words of encouragement, and news from around campus. Unlike the other schools, our school incorporates competition into the events as young men have alot of energy, and Mr White and Coach Tate felt as though students needed a place to let that energy out. Since its conception it has evolved and grown to fit the current YMLA but the basic formula has remained the same.
At some point early in the morning, YMLA students convene in one of 2 locations: The Auditorium or The Gym. Here, they receive information about the happenings around the school, updates on what they need to look out for, and statistics on how well their pride is doing points wise. What is a PRIDE? Well, its essentially a house, like at Hogwarts. Each student is randomly assigned to either Dunbar, Einstein, Mandela, or Sugihara upon enrolling to the school and the loyalty is intense. To YMLA students, especially middle school ones, prides are EVERYTHING. They are a source of community, fun, competition, and well, pride! This is a massive part of what makes Conventus so special to our young men, as when those pride statistics are shown on the screen during Conventus it shows everyone how your group is doing academically, behaviorally, and competitively.
Competitions at Conventus, when they happen, can get very fierce. In a school with a strict dress code the prospect of not only winning free dress, but doing so in a way that gets you recognition from the whole student body, is promising. Conventus Competitions can range from simple Ka-hoots to Multi-Conventus long dodgeball tournaments, to a school wide chant competition (each of the 4 prides has a chant, some good, some great, some definitely not either of those).
While the Conventus schedule has changed many times over the years, for the past 2 years we’ve had Combined Conventus on Mondays in the auditorium, with the entire student body being lead through the assembly by our principal Mr White. Combined Conventus is the blueprint, and is what the paragraph above mostly references. Split Conventus is on thursdays, with Middle School Conventus being lead by faculty, mainly Coach Tate, and High School Conventus being led by The Gentlemen’s Bugle. These conventus’ follow a similar formula to Combined Conventus, but drop the pride statistics, general addressing of school trends and usually guarantee an activity before dismissal. These Split Conventus are where most information is given to students, as they can focus on the specific announcements for the different school communities. Each week, Middle and High School switch between the gym and auditorium.
High School Conventus is arguably one of the most unique things YMLA has to offer. While the other Conventus are led by faculty members, High School is entirely student run. The Gentlemen’s Bugle staff create all the conventus slides, plan all the games and activities, and are usually the hosts of Conventus. High School Conventus ventures into more mature conversation and topics ranging from drug use in schools to Sean Combs arrest, to whether or not aliens are real. These conversations are often had through panels, debates, and general discussion. As the students are older in High School Conventus, the games can also be much more complex, with students being able to suggest activities and playing games such as chrades, imposters, song association, and shadow boxing.
As this article is being written, Conventus is undergoing a major change in how it will be run going forward. After the Class of 2023 graduated, and with them the old team for High School Conventus, Brothers Kyu Williams, Devin Stevenson, Ronnie Johnson, and Jared Saucedo, there was a need for a new team to take over the program. Brothers Ellington Holkmann as the host, Dilandimel Desman on technology, Camden Chambers, and later Aaron Grimaldo on sound have since been credited by Mr White as creating the standard modern Conventus, and the two most successful years of High School Conventus. As such, going forward all Conventus programs will transition to student led events to cultivate leadership opportunities for new students and continue the success Conventus has experienced.
If you’re looking for more information on our schools culture and origins, check out Destined To Lead, our 2 part story on Mr White and the beginnings of YMLA.
