Horizons Director Brings Deep Connections to Community

Mention a local business owner, head of a Berkshires nonprofit, local activist or civic leader, or another Berkshires mover and shaker, and, chances are, Caterina Penna knows them, or collaborated with them, or served on a board with them, or … well, you get the picture.

Named last September as the School’s new Director of Horizons, Caterina possesses a vast network from which to draw as she puts her mark on this signature MHS program — and she is leveraging those connections to take Horizons to its next level.

“Caterina brings extensive civic engagement, experience in student development and leadership, is a former educator, and she does networking like no other,” says MHS Dean of Equity and Inclusion Paula Lima Jones. “You bring up a name in the Berkshires or Pittsfield, and Caterina has worked with or connected with them in some way.”

It is through that lens that Caterina views her work as the program enters its fourth decade and the Horizons team looks to the year ahead and to the next decade. With experience in educational leadership, advancement, and student-centered programming, Caterina also brings a knack for pulling together key constituencies — the Horizons team, MHS faculty and students, and Horizons partners — as they vision for the program’s future.

“I believe that throughout my life, all of my decisions to this point have led me to this role,” Caterina explains. “I have worked with students, faculty, and community partners to create opportunities to elevate student success while advancing institutional missions. I have led initiatives that center storytelling, philanthropy, and engagement — skills vital to the Horizons program’s ability to prepare young people for purposeful educational and lived experiences. And, I have always centered youth and community. All this ties together in leading Horizons, which is such a community-focused program.”

In this role, Caterina envisions Horizons as an intentional, holistic, four-year experience in which every grade is a stepping-stone toward the next year’s work.

“Horizons is certainly known for internships in the eleventh and twelfth grades,” she notes, “but there is so much we do in the ninth and tenth grades — building a sense of self-advocacy, developing an understanding of who we are and what is important to us — that prepares students for those experiences. It all builds and scaffolds and is critical to a student’s growth and experiences in the program.”

Already, there have been adjustments, some subtle and others larger, in each grade. Ninth-graders, for instance, continue their decades-long Plant Sale, but this year added a new element — donating plants to Habitat for Humanity — as a lead-in to work during sophomore year.

“We want to give students a taste of civic engagement in advance of tenth grade, when they will explore that much more intensely,” Caterina explains. Sophomores, as a stepping-stone to junior Horizons, visited nearby Great Barrington and the W.E.B. Du Bois Center for Freedom and Democracy, to see civic engagement in action. The aim, Caterina adds, was to explore issues and topics of interest and discover ways to make a difference, while also informing what students might do as juniors and seniors, when Horizons focuses on volunteer opportunities and internships, often tied to a student’s college and career interests.

In any given year, Horizons partners with some 75 sites across Berkshire County, and Caterina’s broad network also helps with recruitment, which reflects student interest each year. New partners last year included architectural firm Berkshire Design, Inc., small business Tea & Boba Lounge, and law firms Martin, Hochberg & Cianflone and Beirwas Law & Associates. Longtime partners Berkshire Botanical Garden, Berkshire Medical Center, Hancock Shaker Village, Jacob’s Pillow, and Pittsfield Public Schools continue as part of the Horizons fold.

When connecting students with sites, Caterina starts not by asking, “What organization do you want to work with?” but, instead, by homing in on a student’s interest and skill set. “I would like students focusing on their skills and interests and not locking into a particular business or organization,” she explains. “There are lots of ways to explore their interests, and broadening their options will provide more opportunities for growth.”

Looking ahead, Caterina and Paula envision Horizons continuing to evolve, while extending the program’s longtime connection to the Berkshires. “Horizons has always been deeply connected to the community, but everyone brings their own network, and I see lots of opportunities for deepening existing connections and adding new ones,” Caterina says. “My role is all about connecting Horizons to the community and bringing opportunities to students at Miss Hall’s.”

“One thing that strikes me about Horizons is that throughout all of its time, the program’s mission has remained steadfastly focused on personal development and service to our local community, and, now, to a global community,” adds Paula. “The program is very much tied to all aspects of the Miss Hall’s community and to a large part of the community outside of Miss Hall’s, and though there have been several shifts in thirty-plus years, Horizons remains a standout moment in a student’s MHS experience.