Last Chapel 2026: Seniors Urged To ‘Choose Kindness’

The Thayer Academy Class of 2026 chose Leeanne Dillmann to serve as guest speaker at Last Chapel, and the young math & computer science teacher did not disappoint. Dillmann offered the soon-to-be graduates three life lessons — Be blessed; Versatility is strength; and Choose kindness — but not before telling them that they had taught her those very same lessons throughout the school year. 

In terms of blessings, Dillmann expressed how grateful she is to teach students so eager to learn. But she also mentioned students seeking her out to play mah-jonng or holding the doors for one another or even just walking into the classroom with a big smile. And, she told students, a change in mindset can view current challenges as future blessings. As proof, Dillmann offered the hard work put in by Thayer’s wrestling program, efforts which translated into one of its best seasons in recent memory. 

“Hold on to your blessings,” Dillmann told the class. 

When discussing the power of versatility, Dillmann peppered her comments with several shout-outs to the graduating class. She mentioned hoops stars also dominating in statistics classes, student-athletes trying out for school musicals and plays, and other students taking the lead in both the classroom and the art room. 

“You’re all multifaceted and incredible,” Dillmann told seniors. “Continue to push yourself to take risks.” 

Dillmann’s last piece of advice is something she’s known for across campus, but the fact that students knew it was coming did not diminish its significance. 

“Kindess is a gift, and you can choose to give it over and over again,” Dillmann said. 

Dillmann concluded her remarks by thanking the class for both the honor of addressing them and the privilege of getting to know them these past few years. 

“This class has shown an immense amount of kindness, and I’m forever grateful,” she said. 

Held today (Friday, June 5) in Alumni Gym, the Last Chapel celebration saw students from all Upper School grades receive individual awards in recognition of their various achievements during the academic year (please see below). The event also included recognition of faculty and staff either retiring or achieving certain service milestones (again, please see below). 

But Last Chapel held several other highlights as well. Head of School Chris Fortunato P ’26, ’28, for instance, had the honor of presenting Jane McCarthy, his executive assistant, with the school’s Unsung Hero Award. Fortunato praised McCarthy’s numerous qualities, from kindness to over-the-top energy to attention to detail, but singled her out for special praise as Thayer’s unofficial “listener-in-chief.” 

Another highlight involved U.S. Army Major Doug Walsh, himself a 2012 graduate of the United States Military Academy, who presented senior Sean Coogan’s appointment to West Point. 

Katherine Smallcomb ’27 began Last Chapel by leading a packed Alumni Gym in the Pledge of Allegiance. Idalyn Chong ’27 then offered a stirring rendition of “America The Beautiful” for appreciative listeners. As is tradition, Last Chapel ended when Archivist-Historian Larry Carlson P ’02, ’05, ’10 performed “Thayer, Thayer Forever” to “sing the seniors out.” 

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FACULTY & STAFF MILESTONES:

TWENTY YEARS OF SERVICE 

— Maureen Sullivan Keleher P ’24, ’26, ’28, ’29

— Billy O’Dwyer ’02

— Anni Zukauskas ’94 P ’28, ’29 

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF SERVICE 

— Garett Butkuss P ’26, ’30 

— Alan Qualtieri 

THIRTY YEARS OF SERVICE 

— Paula Collins P ’10, ’21

— Lee Smith 

THIRTY-FIVE YEARS OF SERVICE 

— Jeff Browne P ’04, ’05 

— Wendi Happ P ’30, ’32 

FORTY YEARS OF SERVICE 

— John Murphy III

RETIRING FACULTY & STAFF 

— Diane Haigh 

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LAST CHAPEL PRIZES 2026

Thayer Academy’s Last Chapel Awards recognize students from all grades who have achieved excellence in particular fields of study or who have demonstrated the qualities of leadership, character, and service that embody the spirit of the Academy. 

 

DEPARTMENTAL PRIZES:

THE BILL HOLBROOK MEMORIAL ARTS PRIZES: Avery Catalano, Painting & Drawing; Ella Aiello, Pottery; William Freeman, Collaborative Design; Mary Keleher, Theater; Samaria Theodore, Photography; Ceili Kornhaber, Dance; Shaanveer Gupta, Instrumental Music; Abigail Dupie, Vocal Music; Charlotte Chisholm, Tech Theater; Amaro Harrington, Media Production. 

THE NICHOLAS AND ROSE PAPANI PRIZE: Robert Peirce, Instrumental; Hannah Currie, Vocal. 

THE FRENCH PRIZES: Owen Haskell, French II; Jane Wood, French III; Katherine Donahue, French IV; 

THE LATIN PRIZES: Benjamin Pike, Latin II; Katie Fortunato, Latin III; Compton Jones, Latin IV; 

THE SPANISH PRIZES: Anne Suwastawan, Spanish II; Dylan Crawford, Spanish III; Aashrita Joga, Spanish IV. 

THE MANDARIN CHINESE PRIZES: Brandon Kwok, Chinese III; Julia Looker, Chinese IV/V. 

THE RICHARD R. DOWNEY JR. MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN WORLD LANGUAGES: Vidyuth Sathish. 

THE MATHEMATICS PRIZES: Ernest Burke, Algebra I; Luke de Laar, Algebra II; Margaret Pyne, Geometry; Aaron Baker, PreCalculus; Aashrita Joga, Calculus; Dillon Driscoll, Computer Science Award. 

THE FRESHMAN SCIENCE AWARD: Alexandra Fernquist 

THE SOPHOMORE SCIENCE PRIZE: Phoebe Catlin 

THE CHARLES A. PITKIN CHEMISTRY PRIZE: Molly Bingham 

THE RENSSELAER MEDAL: Dillon Driscoll 

THE W. LAWRENCE CAHALL JR. PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN THE STUDY OF SCIENCE: Katherine Donahue

THE PETER SCOTT CAHALL SCIENCE PRIZE: Ethan Choi 

THE NAOMI R. AND SAUL B. COHEN SCIENCE AWARD: Isabel Berdik 

THE WILLIAM J. HOLBROOK AMERICAN HISTORY PRIZE: Gavin Young 

THE UNITED STATES HISTORY PRIZE: Casey Lukens 

THE AMERICAN HISTORY ESSAY AWARD: Isabella Kahn 

THE SPECIAL HISTORIAN AWARD: Claire Summers 

THE WORLD HISTORY PRIZE: Samuel Hirsch 

THE MOST IMPROVED FRESHMAN ENGLISH AWARDS: Olivia Collum, Brendan Curran, Huixin Deng, Charles Doyle, Faith Elias, Meredith McCabe. 

THE HARRIET GEMMEL SHORT STORY PRIZE: Brynn Hsu

THE JUNIOR ENGLISH ESSAYIST AWARD: Amira Aborjaily, Immanuel Chikwendu, Ana Sullivan. 

THE EDITH GILES MITCHELL PRIZE: Oliver Berdik

 

BOOK PRIZES:

THE COLUMBIA COLLEGE BOOK AWARD: Emily Salisbury 

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE BOOK AWARD: Compton Jones 

THE HARVARD BOOK CLUB PRIZE: Katherine Silvers 

THE BRANDEIS BOOK AWARD: Connor Cigna 

THE ST. LAWRENCE BOOK AWARD: Aashrita Joga 

THE YALE BOOK AWARD: Isabella Kahn 

THE TULANE UNIVERSITY BOOK AWARD: Beatrix Cohen-Raymond 

THE SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY BOOK AWARD: Finlay Turner 

THE SAINT MICHAEL’S COLLEGE BOOK AWARD: William Bunn, Katherine Cedrone 

THE SAINT ANSELM BOOK AWARD: Ethan Choi 

THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER GEORGE EASTMAN YOUNG LEADERS AWARD: Saoirse Morrissey 

THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER FREDERICK DOUGLASS AND SUSAN B. ANTHONY AWARD: Immanuel Chikwendu 

THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER BAUSCH & LOMB HONORARY SCIENCE AWARD: Madison Hayes 

THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER XEROX AWARD FOR INNOVATION AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: Caeden Mullin 

 

GENERAL AWARDS:

THE NANCY DINATALE TAYLOR PRIZE: Zinaya West 

THE THOMAS J. BERRY III PRIZE: Naraya Dasilva 

THE WILLIAM C. GOULD JR. PRIZE: Elijah Scott 

THE COLIN F. MACDONALD III PRIZE: Ryan Heerman 

THE MAUREEN E. BUCKEN PRIZE: Kate O’Donnell 

THE LEO R. FLYNN PRIZE: Catherine Macharia 

THE THOMAS J. GERAGHTY AWARD: Ariana Chery-Gonzalez                                                     

THE FRANK E. REMICK PRIZE: Teafilia Walton 

THE ADA HELEN GILBERT CLAFF PRIZE: Anne Marie Zukauskas 

THE WILLIAM J. HOLBROOK PRIZE: Katherine Donahue 

THE CLASS OF 1992 COMMUNITY SPIRIT AWARD: Oliver Massey 

THE WARD S. DONNER PRIZE: Madeline Call 

THE PATRICE DONOVAN COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Tatiana Calvillo 

THE JULIAN H. CHERUBINI PRIZE FOR SCHOLASTIC EXCELLENCE: Compton Jones, Katherine Silvers.                                              

THE CHERUBINI PRIZE FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN THE ARTS: Ella Wenger, Visual Arts; Yutung Chong, Performing Arts. 

THE FERNAND LACHANCE AWARD: Tessa Harper 

THE MATTHEW CALLAHAN HEALEY ’09 MEMORIAL PRIZE: Cole Daniello 

THE KISHA WATTS MEMORIAL AWARD: Paige Johnson 

THE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL LEAGUE AWARD OF EXCELLENCE: Claire Carlin, Jack Concannon, Quinn Ognibene, John Sullivan 

THE THAYER ACADEMY PARENT ASSOCIATION COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARDS: Cailyn Hsu, Ryan Dowden, Lyndsay Mingolelli, Vidyuth Sathish. 

THE REUBEN AND LIZZIE GROSSMAN AWARDS: Ryan Dowden, Cailyn Hsu.