Photo credit: Phoebe Measer

Students gather in the courtyard for the first Tech-Free Friday Jan. 12. The 10th grade Student Council representatives hosted the latest event to encourage students to spend time away from their devices and promote connection.

Magnetic fishing in the fountain, cornhole, Jenga, candy and board games filled the courtyard during lunch Friday, Jan. 12, as part of an effort to help students unplug from their screens. These events, called Tech-Free Fridays, will take place every Friday for the month of January, each one planned by an upper school grade level’s Student Council representatives.  

The 10th grade Student Council representatives hosted the most recent Tech-Free Friday and provided activities for students to enjoy during lunch.

Ninth grade dean of Culture, Community and Belonging Stephanie Ferri said there is always room to help students gain awareness around their use of technology.

“We know that being on devices can sometimes bring people together, but in real life, it can also kind of cause barriers,” Ferri said. “And that’s sort of where the idea of phone-free Friday lunches was born.”

Tenth grade Student Council representative Sara Salehi helped plan the first Tech-Free Friday. She said because no one on Student Council has planned these events before, it was somewhat of a surprise. Salehi, along with the other 10th grade representatives, put out candy and many games that don’t require technology.

“We’re hoping that everyone will learn to connect between different grades. Not being on technology opens up for a lot more interaction between different people,” Salehi said. “I can already see some 10th graders playing cornhole with ninth graders, and sixth graders talking to [upper] schoolers.”

Junior Julianna Hatton said she likes the idea of Tech-Free Fridays being implemented on campus because of the advantages of going tech-free.

“There are scientifically-proven benefits of being tech-free and of distancing ourselves from our technology,” Hatton said. “I think Archer providing the space for us to do that and to kind of make sure that we really do disengage from tech will promote healthier digital habits and really make sure that we’re all more mindful of our technology use on campus.” 

Ferri said she wants to avoid these events feeling like a “punishment,” so she and the deans will continue to make an effort to offer activities to help bring the community together. 

“We thought about Fridays as, in general, just a really nice end of week way to come together as a community,” Ferri said. “[If] you’re not going to be on a device or if you’re going to take that time away, we also want to supplement with programming that’s going to help bring people together.”

Hatton said she hopes these events will inspire students to go tech-free more often, whether it be for a day or an hour. 

“I think students hopefully will see positive impacts either just their mental health and mental well-being or just how they feel Friday afternoon not being on tech at lunch,” Hatton said. “I think those positive impacts will hopefully inspire some of Archer students to, you know, promote less tech heavy activities and a less tech heavy mindset in and out of school.”