The term “Lab lifer” usually refers to students who have attended the Laboratory Schools since Nursery 3. But for some alumni, this phrase has taken on a new meaning: after graduating from U-High, they’ve returned. This time, to teach.
Suzanne Baum, Class of 1987; Marty Billingsley, Class of 1977; Erica Cheung, Class of 1995 and Tom Piane, Class of 1992, are some of the teachers who have experienced Lab both as students and as faculty, giving them a unique perspective on how the school has changed. According to them, the curious nature of U-High’s students hasn’t changed, but they have noticed shifts in the cohesion of the community, academic competition and teacher autonomy.
One of the most notable changes, according to Mr. Piane, now a physical education teacher, is the sense of community. He said that the school felt more connected during his time attending Lab because all the grades shared one campus until the opening of Earl Shapiro Hall in 2013.
“It was more close-knit, I would say,” Mr. Piane said. “You would see the little kids in the hallway as a senior. They’d say hi to you. You would also see all of your kindergarten, first grade, second grade teachers in the hallway.”
Ms. Cheung, a middle school algebra teacher whose four siblings also attended Lab, appreciated how families and teachers were more familiar with each other. However, now that Lab has a larger student body, she does not know if the students and teachers are as close as they used to be.
“I formed really close friendships with a lot of people, and a lot of the teachers had stayed here for a long time and really understood the community, and understood my family, and a lot of my other peers, too,” Ms. Cheung said.
Ms. Billingsley has also noticed changes in the openness of Lab’s campus and believes that this has caused students to no longer consider the school their second home.
“When I started working here, every single door all around the whole block was open. People would come and go,” Ms. Billingsley said. “Now, everything is locked down, including the playing fields, which means that the community is excluded.”
Beyond community changes, these teachers believe that there have been changes to the student experience as well. While Lab has often fostered a competitive academic environment, Ms. Cheung has noticed that social media has increased competition. With social media comes increased access to information. A notable example of this is an Instagram account created each year, U-High Decisions, where graduating students post their college decisions.
“In a way that I think it’s still that students really do want to excel. I think it’s become maybe more competitive in that there’s social media and stuff, and that puts added pressure,” Ms. Cheung said.
Despite changes, each of these teachers continues to appreciate Lab’s unique environment. When Ms. Baum was considering what kind of school she wanted to work at after teaching in Spain, she searched for a laboratory school — a school affiliated with a university designed to promote experimentation with teaching methods. She appreciates the independence given to teachers to dictate what and how they want to teach, as well as the experimental learning emphasis at Lab.
“Every voice should be heard, teaching students how to think, how to criticize, to question, to cite their sources, not to trust everything they read online,” Ms. Baum said. “I think I really value that learning by doing, learning by making mistakes, and letting every voice be heard, and learning how to disagree politely and civilly.”
However, Ms. Baum feels that recent policies regarding classroom instruction might change the level of autonomy teachers have.
“We’ve been accused of indoctrinating children, which I think is a fine line to walk when you’re a human being. I live in Hyde Park, so I see my students at the shops or at Trader Joe’s, and I’ve seen students when I’ve marched peacefully at protests in Chicago,” Ms. Baum said. “I’ve had very conservative students talk to me, dialogue with me and want to debate with me. So I hope that they’ve always felt comfortable, but I think it is hard for them to not know that I have this liberal viewpoint.”
Ms. Baum hopes that Lab continues to embrace all of the students’ voices, backgrounds and opinions. Beyond policies, the increasingly tense and emotional political environment of the world has affected discourse in the classroom.
“We used to embrace more, have a lot more fun disagreeing with someone and arguing with someone and trying to win them over, whereas now it’s just become personal,” Ms. Baum said.
Despite these perceived changes, one thing that has not changed about the Lab is students’ eagerness to learn, according to Ms. Baum.
She defined these inquisitive characteristics of Lab students: “Their motivation, their willingness to work, their true interest in wanting to learn and always looking for a challenge.”
From being educated at Lab to becoming educators who shape the learning environment and students, these faculty have brought a new meaning to the term “Lab lifer” and a unique perspective to how Lab has changed over time.
