Bromley and Beyond:
Personal Goals Perpetuate Personal Growth
We're all familiar with the phrase "change doesn't happen overnight," so why is it that we often expect too much of ourselves too fast? It's a question that Bromley Brook takes very seriously - especially when it comes to helping girls create positive, lasting change in their social, emotional and personal lives. It's also part of the philosophy behind the four goals each girl works towards during her stay at Bromley.
Based on the concept of change as a journey rather than an event, the goals begin by asking each girl to embrace the need to create differences in her life and concludes with the personal acceptance of inner authority. Girls acquire and develop valuable life skills as part of the goal process, including a genuine understanding of social as well as personal responsibility.
"Working towards a goal [of any kind] isn't an instant gratification process," says Lucille Mutty, Bromley's counseling manager. "It's a long term process." Every goal you achieve becomes part of your journey towards the next one. With that in mind, Bromley's goal system is an integral part of community life, from the moment a girl arrives until well after she moves beyond the Bromley experience:
- Acceptance
The first stage of the four-goal process, Acceptance is, quite simply, the process by which a girl arriving at Bromley begins to come to terms with the decisions, behaviors and events that have brought her to this point. Learning from peer mentors, community coaches and other adults and faculty, she begins to acknowledge her current physical, emotional and social condition and to accept the process of change. - Balance
Moving beyond acceptance requires commitment to creating positive change. Establishing balance in each area of life (academic, social, emotional and communal) is a fundamental part of that transition. The more consistent a girl's actions, responses and behaviors, the more she is able to take ownership of her life. - Personal Challenge
A significant - and notable achievement - Personal Challenge builds on the work of Acceptance and Balance by asking girls to start taking on more independence. Having earned the respect and trust of peers, mentors and faculty, girls who achieve this goal are recognized and rewarded for the considerable progress they have made. - Inner Authority
The culmination of Bromley's four goals, Inner Authority is the point at which girls demonstrate their readiness - and ability - to take their lives seriously and to take an interest in their personal well-being on a higher level. Girls who achieve inner authority have learned to apply the life skills and lessons acquired throughout the other three stages.
"The goal system is a process that the girls really latch on to - they learn that earning a goal is the result of hard work, and it's a long-term process, not instant gratification," says Mutty, who adds that girls also participate in "gateway" workshops before moving on to both the third and fourth goals.
Designed to give girls the opportunity to reflect on what they have achieved during the previous goals, the gateway workshops are intense, demanding, and an accomplishment in their own right, she explains. Girls who complete a gateway experience don't immediately "graduate" to the next goal; rather, they are first given additional time to consider their progress and demonstrate their readiness before moving on.
Overall, Bromley's goal system has a goal of its own: to provide a positive, strength- and accomplishment-based path to help girls navigate the complex, often-overwhelming task of creating lasting personal change. And while the goal system is quite possibly one of the most important aspects of a girl's Bromley experience, journeying through each is an accomplishment that extends well beyond the realm of the school itself. It is a symbol of a girl's personal progress - and her ability to maintain a healthy, productive and balanced life, wherever she goes.
