Meet TikTok’s Ms. Connie, The Kind, Progressive High School Receptionist You Never Had
Ms Connie is the creation of TikTok user Nicole Ciravolo, and an opportunity for kids to roleplay what their school might look like if it was designed to support their needs, not obstruct them.
High school was a tough experience for many of us, a mess of awkward social encounters and demeaning run-ins with sadistic adults. Which might explain why TikTok user @nicoleciravolo has become overwhelmingly popular on the app for roleplaying the character of Ms. Connie, the progressive high school receptionist most of us never had.
Yep, Ms. Connie is the original creation of Nicole, and she’s just about the nicest, most attentive member of a high school staff you could imagine. Rather than using her authority to belittle or humiliate students, she treats each one with love and care, making sure always to use the correct pronouns while she’s doing so.
Of all the clips Ciravolo has uploaded, this is probably the most popular Ms. Connie video, a short clip in which the receptionist helps a student with a name change.
@/nicoleciravolo is a popular TikTok creator probably best known for her character Ms. Connie.
Ms. Connie is the hidden power of the high school, a secretary in the administrators’ office. She’s savvy, gossipy, and unswervingly dedicated to the protection of students. pic.twitter.com/rPW4uuqZjO
— Frisco Uplink (@_danilo) September 5, 2020
But to be honest, every video is great, whether the receptionist is going against the school administration for putting students on detention, or just chatting about her own dating life in that broad New Yawk accent.
The popularity of Ms. Connie is substantial—each video has millions of views.
Ms. Connie is the fantasy of a school administration that is socially competent, committed to both justice and the safety of marginalized students. pic.twitter.com/i2ragbxO9O
— Frisco Uplink (@_danilo) September 5, 2020
The creator wants to validate the experiences of her viewers who may feel isolated and powerless in the structures that define their daily existence.
While they may not have a Ms. Connie to look out for them, they DESERVE one. pic.twitter.com/c81CyfBUJE
— Frisco Uplink (@_danilo) September 5, 2020
This is art with a radical, loving message:
The viewer should have a world where they find safety at school, where the adults in their lives truly see and value them, where their experiences are respected and their needs are accommodated. pic.twitter.com/9Wq4dAZ5R5
— Frisco Uplink (@_danilo) September 5, 2020
Ms. Connie represents a constructive imaginary exercise:
She is an invitation to young people to imagine a world where their needs matter. This sort of fantasy is the bedrock of a life lived well for people who have been mistreated by the systems of power in their lives. pic.twitter.com/UbfuNNUPq1
— Frisco Uplink (@_danilo) September 5, 2020
The character is, as Twitter user Frisco Uplink has said, a way for disempowered students to imagine what a school might look like that was designed for their needs, rather than an entity that obstructs them. No wonder such a message is going viral.
For more videos, you can head to Nicole’s Twitter account, here.