As you walk into Memorial Hall West, you’ll see a sticker on the glass of the door. It’s to the side, inconspicuous. The same sticker can be seen mere feet away on the door into Mem East, and across the street at the entrance to 194. It’s a small black and white wolf, head raised in a howl.

Williston girls call these three buildings home, and they’re all part of what is now being called the “Wolfpack.”

Erin Davey, Katherine Garrity, and Allison Marsland – heads of Mem West, Mem East, and 194, respectively – wanted the girls to feel part of something bigger than their one dorm. On the front of the Mem West orientation packet, for example, it reads, “Please remember that you represent the Williston Northampton School, Mem West, and yourself at all times. Always try to be your best self, empower, and take care of each other.”

It’s that spirit of collaboration, empowerment, and support that defines the Williston girls dorms.

Why is the “Wolfpack” necessary? Well, out of eight Williston dorms, three are for girls, and about half the school population is female. Any space with this large a female presence needs female voices. Women’s Empowerment Club, GSG (Girls Support Girls), and events like Why Not Speak? Day already provide a safe discussion space, but the girls dorm heads wanted to do something more.

The inspiration for the “Wolfpack” came from retired U.S. soccer team forward Abby Wambach and her book, “Wolfpack,” based on her 2018 commencement speech at New York City’s Barnard College.

Marsland, Garrity, and Davey knew they wanted to bring the idea of a “Wolfpack” to campus when they read Wambach’s book this spring. “It quickly became my favorite book ever,” Davey, who went to a conference this summer at which Wambach spoke, added.

In her book, Wambach explores our perception of the rules that define the female experience. “If we keep playing by the Old Rules, we’ll never change the game,” she writes.

Some “New Rules” at the core of Wambach’s Wolfpack include, “Create your own path,” “Be grateful and demand what you deserve,” and, “Lead with humanity. Cultivate leaders.”

“We’re hoping to use these new rules as a way to come together not just for the girls’ dorms but for all females on campus,” said Davey. “Instead of being divisive, we want to come together.”