Director of Residential Life Mr. Lewis Shares Goals and Achievements for the Boarding Community

By Nini Lu ’29

The following is a transcript of an October 15 conversation with Director of Residential Life, Christopher Lewis ’15, edited for concision and clarity.

How would you say the year is going with residential life so far?

It’s going really well. The beginning of the year was extremely positive. We did a wonderful job welcoming new students, and I attribute that to the boarding monitors, Jace LiVigni ’27 and Shira Keitner ’27, in tandem with the house monitors; they did an excellent job. The energy seems to be positive, and the boarding students seem to have a good experience in the dorms. People have been here on the weekends; day students have been able to hang out in dorms at open houses and do things too. The campus feels really good.

You used to be a boarding student at Milton. How did your experience of boarding life and work in admissions impact your decisions as you come into your role?

I lived in Goodwin when I was here. Being so far away from my home in Jamaica wasn’t easy for me initially, but I really leaned on the family that I found in the dorm, and as a result, I was able to benefit from the support of my dorm parents, my advisor, and my best friends, who are still my best friends.

They’re all kids I lived with in Goodwin, so I am very grateful for what they did for me. Working in admissions, I often tell prospective families why they should choose Milton and our boarding program. As you know, I live in Hathaway now as a dorm parent, so the dorm has always been the foundational part of my Milton experience. It’s one of my favorite parts about being at Milton, in addition to coaching, because it’s home for me. I’m very dedicated to making sure that Milton feels like a home for all students who come here.

When the opportunity to be Director of Residential Life came about, I was very excited because it means a lot to me, and I think I’m able to bring a real, authentic enthusiasm because I benefited from it. I recognize that Milton is different now, so I’m always trying to learn from the current students.

What are your current long-term plans for the Milton boarding community?

My long-term plans are to build upon and expand student agency in the dorms. I hope to better incorporate student feedback on things they want more of and potentially examine how we can do better as it pertains to residential life, and empower student leaders to create traditions and shape dorm culture. I also want boarding and day students to see all houses as a place where they can connect, build friendships, and create memories. I also want to bring consistency within the dorms while also holding onto each dorm’s unique identity.

Do you think that having a lot of specific events targeted towards boarders, such as dorm dinners, is something that’s exacerbating the boarder-day divide, or that it might help in building a community?

The way I see it, being a boarding student here is a specific experience. If we want to make a really strong community on campus, we have to have a really strong boarding program. As Director of Residential Life, it’s my job to focus on that. There are a lot of boarding community traditions that we’ve lost over the years, so I think we are bringing that back and reinforcing that this is a boarding community. If we can do that really well, my belief is that we can then make this campus feel more exciting and accessible for day students too.

I’m acutely aware that there is a difference between the experience that boarders and day students have. My job is to make this campus feel accessible to all students. But it starts with having a strong boarding program. If the dorm isn’t a place people want to be on the weekends, then that becomes detrimental to the community. Day students have always been invited to sit-down dinners. We’re formalizing that now by encouraging boarders to invite their day student friends because it’s their home, and you’re inviting people into your home. I’m very committed to making this campus feel like a home for all of our students, and I think it starts with having a really strong boarding program.

With your own experience when you were a student here, do you think there was a boarder-day divide? And as you watch this community, were there key turning points where you felt like it got worse or better?

I’m not even tempted to call it a divide. Rather, a different experience, and that has always been the case. So what we’re witnessing now is completely unordinary. I do think COVID changed things, frankly, especially in the boarding program, by changing programs and traditions, and how the community viewed campus. I want this to be a place where they want to be.

When I was here, I shared similar sentiments to students now. We’re only a month into school. So, if people said that there is no divide, I’d say, “Oh, that’s interesting.” But again, it’s a long road. Because we have new students joining the community every year, we’re always going to have to start to work our way towards making people feel as if there’s no divide, right?

Back in my day, we did not really have the connection points to other people on our phones that you have now. You can be in your room talking to twenty friends. I couldn’t do that when I was here. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean we have to work a little harder to make those physical connection points more present. So that’s really another difference. But otherwise, Milton kids are great. You guys are all awesome. Working in admissions, I saw that. I read a lot of applications, and every single kid who chooses Milton says they want Milton because it’s incredibly diverse. They want to meet people across differences and expand their social perspectives. That’s the type of kid who comes here, and I’m really excited.

Source: Milton Academy