Thayer Celebrates the Class of 2018
Faculty, staff, friends, and family gathered on Thayer's main lawn to celebrate the class of 2018 at the Academy's 141st Commencement Saturday morning.
Simeone Montrond '18 gave the invocation at the start of the ceremony. Retiring faculty Dan Levinson and Jake Diamond P'06, '09 served as the commencement speakers.
Dan Levinson told the graduates, "Shape your life as much as you can. Don't expect you can shape it all. But keep constant the belief that you will be rewarded day in and day out if you seek out what magnifies your spirit. I believe you'll know if you stay alert to that most sensitive and thoughtful voice in the back of your head," he said.
Jake Diamond offered the graduates lessons from his many travels across the globe, from Trinidad, Panama, the Amazon, and Peru. He exhorted the students to continue their record of service. "Class of 2018, you started charities, volunteered at schools, hospitals, long-term facilities, churches, Sunday schools, environmental protection centers...You traveled to help others in Pine Ridge, New Orleans, Detroit, Haiti, Canada, Peru, Bolivia, Cambodia, Tibet, Nepal, and Kenya. Keep on being a shining example of service to others and of fighting the good fight," he said.
Senior Speaker James Kotopolous '18 quoted Albert Einstein saying, "You can't count the things that count." He said to his fellow classmates, "My charge to you is to emphasize the things that truly count—the things that lie behind the numbers."
In her address Valedictorian Annie Huycke '18 compared graduation to a theater performance, of which she did many in her time at Thayer. "When the final curtain closes and when each prop and costume has been put back in its place, sometimes I like to return to the empty stage. With the set cleared and all the seats vacant, there's an overwhelming sense of finality. But the irony is that, at the same time, the ending of one show is merely the first step towards the beginning of another," she said. "Today, a curtain might be closing, but a new curtain opens."
Lucy Relaford '18 provided the Benediction to close out the Commencement.
On Friday, the entire Upper School gathered to wrap up the academic year at Last Chapel. Upper School math teacher Benjamin Goldstein addressed the school and talked about cleaning out his office, and what he will take with him, and what he will leave.
"Some of these objects tell significant stories or remind us of particular values to strive towards. Others things are just... things. They may have spoken to us at one point, but their meanings have faded over time or no longer resonate with the principles we hold most dearly. This happens, and when it does we should recognize it. Seniors, you and I are at a transition time in our lives. This is an opportune moment for us to take stock and develop a critical eye for the objects that continue to reflect our values as opposed to the things that have become dust collectors," he said.
Last Chapel and Commencement Award winners are listed below:
| Award | 2018 winner |
| THE BILL HOLBROOK MEMORIAL ARTS PRIZES | |
| Painting and Drawing | Erika Plante |
| Pottery | Jackson Mansi |
| Architectural Design | None |
| Graphic Design | Erika Plante |
| Film | Matthew Charleston |
| Theater | Jack Manning |
| Photography | Maggie Skillman |
| Dance | Madeleine Castanon |
| Instrumental Music | Anya Howley |
| Vocal Music | Kelsey Sullivan |
| Tech Theater | Jazmin Diaz |
| LANGUAGE | |
| French II | Kate Pulgini |
| French III | Michael Nessralla |
| French IV | Ally Deegan |
| Latin II | Gao Mo |
| Latin III | Garner Thompson |
| Latin IV | Tim Kemp |
| Spanish II | Samantha Hughes |
| Spanish III | Sananca Shen |
| Spanish IV | Josh Chaskes |
| Chinese II | Giovanni Marinilli |
| Chinese III | Karina Kilburn |
| Richard Downey Jr. - Senior | Jacqueline Gilpin |
| MATHEMATICS | |
| Algebra I | Casey Cashman, Ava Chase |
| Algebra II | Cheng Rui Yu, Katherine McDevitt |
| Geometry | Allison Deegan |
| PreCalculus | Adam Fogel |
| Computer Science | Jiaqi Lu, Olivia Floody |
| SCIENCE | |
| Freshman | Vinh Tran |
| Sophomore | Olivia O'Connor |
| Pitkin Chemistry | Ruibin Chen |
| Rensselaer Medal | Timothy Kemp |
| W. Lawrence Cahall Jr. | Erika Plante |
| Peter Scott Cahall | Jiaqi Lu |
| Naomi R and Saul B. Cohen | Katherine Barrett |
| HISTORY | |
| William J. Holbrook | Reilly Sheehan |
| United States History | Campbell Resnick |
| Merton L. Emerson Essay | Finn Doherty |
| Special Historian | Matthew Garner Thompson, Jackson Humphreys, George Austin Bennett |
| Roland Stanley Cooper | Aidan Kealy |
| ENGLISH | |
| Most Improved Freshmen (5 - one from each teacher) | Emmett Griffin, Casey Cashman, Eric Foley, Luca Milano, Kaitlyn Freeley, Matthew Sullivan |
| Harriet Gemmel Sophomore Short Story | Olivia O'Connor |
| Junior English Essayist | Charlotte Nickerson |
| HISTORY/ENGLISH | |
| Edith Giles Mitchell | Caitlin Caulfield |
| The Patrice Donovan Community Service Award - Grades 9 – 11 | Kiley Clancy |
| Ward S. Donner Prize - Sophomore | Allison Deegan |
| Ada Helen Gilbert Claff Prize-soph girl | Alison Swierczynski |
| Nancy DiNatale Taylor Award - Sophomore | Kendall Roland |
| Thomas J. Berry III Prize - Sophomore | Thomas Gaffey |
| Maureen E. Bucken Prize - Sophomore | Gabriella Grattan |
| Class of 1992 Community Spirit Award - Sophomore | Aimee Matos |
| Colin F. MacDonald III Prize - Sophomore | Christian Jack Schneider |
| Leo R. Flynn Prize - Sophomore | Henry Richard |
| Nicholas and Rose Papani Prize | Thomas Briggs and Logan Clancy |
| William C. Gould, Jr. Prize | Meghan Webb |
| William J. Holbrook Prize - Sophomore | Jackson Humphreys |
| Thomas J. Geraghty Prize - Sophomore | Alanna Curtis |
| Frank E. Remick Prize | Henry Richard |
| The Patrick C. Walsh Memorial Award - Senior | Stephon Kindle |
| The Fernand LaChance Award - Junior or Senior | Nina Swett |
| The Julian H. Cherubini Prize for Scholastic Excellence | Timothy Kemp |
| The Cherubini Prize for Achievement in the Arts | Visual Arts: Chengyu "Cheryl" Xue Performing Arts: David Havens |
| Harriot Boynton Thompson Scholarship for Harvard and Radcliffe College | Drew Kelner |
| Morris and Ernestine Litchfield Scholarship for Harvard and Radcliffe College | Drew Kelner |
| TAPA Community Service Awards | |
| Reuben & Lizzie Grossman Awards | Jacob Comeau and Hanna Stern |
| ISL Award of Excellence | Aidan McDonough, Duke Lenaghan, and Anna Costello |
| Matt Healey Award-Senior | Michael McDonough |
| COMMENCEMENT PRIZES | |
| PHOEBE LEE HOSMER FOREIGN LANGUAGE PRIZES | |
| French | Anna Huycke |
| Latin | Kayla McKeon |
| Spanish | Samantha Rando |
| LEIGHTON S. TOWER HISTORY PRIZE | Samantha Rando |
| LOUISE E. SAUL AWARD FOR ENGLISH | Anna Huycke for Writing, Amelia Browne for Literature |
| MAURICE R. SEYMOUR PRIZE FOR MATHEMATICS | Drew Kelner |
| CHARLES R. MANGAT-RAI PRIZE FOR COMPUTER PROGRAMMING | Drew Kelner, Loan Anh Tran, Caitlyn Marat |
| HELEN ALDEN BREEN DRAMATICS AWARD | Jake Comeau and Lauren Bennett |
| E. IONE LOCKWOOD MUSIC AWARD | Anna Huycke, Felisha Cabral, and Benjamin Pinola |
| THE JOHN M. RODOCANACHI ART PRIZE | Lucille Relaford |
| NATHANIEL AUGUSTINE THAYER SCHOLARSHIP | Morgan Langenhagen |
| Thomas J. Berry III Award - Senior | Cassidy Kearney |
| Maureen E. Bucken Award - Senior | Hanna Stern |
| The Walter & Prudence Abell Distinguished Service Awards - Senior | Grace O'Hare, Jazmin Diaz, Stephon Kindle |
| Gilbert A. Booth Award- Senior | Katherine Stanwood |
| Gilbert A. Booth Award- Senior | James Kotopoulos |
| Nancy DiNatale Taylor Award- Senior Girl-outstanding female athlete | Stephanie Lyons |
| Thayer Academy Outstanding Male Athlete Award - Senior | Kevin Deree |
| Ward Donner Award -Senior boy | Cole Roland |
| Ward Donner Award -Senior girl | Anna Huycke |
| Jotham B. Sewall Prize | Anna Huycke |
| Headmaster's Award | James Kotopoulos |
Commencement speaker Jake Diamond P'06, '09
Commencement speaker Dan Levinson
Valedictorian Annie Huycke '18
Senior Speaker James Kotopolous '18
Headmaster Ted Koskores '70 P'10, '13
News
