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The Class of 2023 Celebrates Commencement
Under picture-perfect blue skies, Westminster celebrated its 135th graduation, held May 27
on Commencement Lawn.
In the days leading up to graduation, excitement mounted with each pre-commencement celebration, including the Spring Awards Ceremony and the Baccalaureate Service, followed by the Lawn Ceremony and the selection of a new Prefect Board.
Finally, the big day arrived with nary a cloud in the sky. Head of School Elaine White welcomed the 120 members of the Class of 2023 and asked them to recognize the many people who have helped them reach this moment in their life: parents, family members, trustees, faculty and staff members and fellow classmates.
For Sixth Formers, it was a bittersweet moment of mingled excitement, anticipation and a bit of melancholy.
“I will miss the people, the community,” said Amber Caruso, who clutched a yellow stem rose as she waited in the procession line.
In their addresses, commencement speakers assured that all the newly minted graduates would always be part of the Westminster community, and they will always have a home on Williams Hill.
Left: Head Prefect Kade Smith ’24. Right: Outstanding Scholar Tia MacDonald ’24
Salutatorian Kade Smith
In his Salutatory address, Head Prefect Kade Smith carried that idea forward. At Westminster, he said, “a common misconception about graduating is that it’s over; you will never see your classmates, teachers, or anyone you used to go to school with. But the beauty of attending Westminster is that now you are in one big family. Once we leave the Hill, we will enter an even larger community, one much bigger than the 425 or so of us. And there will be fellow alumni, students, parents, teachers willing to be there for you. … I know it’s a cliché, but Martlets do fly together. Although I know we won’t see each other every day, like before, but it doesn’t mean we are truly gone.”
He continued: “Our shared experiences and compassion for this place will always keep us attached.”
Outstanding Scholar Tia MacDonald
Tia MacDonald delivered a thought-provoking address on the perception of time, suggesting that our memories exist out of time, flowing from the present moment and into the future.
One of MacDonald’s distinct memories from her time at Westminster was an experience she had while volunteering with Horizons.
She recalled it in detail: “A midafternoon sun blazed, and I usually hate those bright hot days, but I was transported somewhere that nullified all of that. A little girl named Zuleyak would roll a hula hoop across the grass to me and laugh; I would roll it back to her and laugh, too. And that was it. Again and again, we tossed the hula hoops and laughed; we chased after them and ran in circles where they landed. We threw ourselves on the ground in time with the landing of the hoops. I can’t describe it more than that, more than simply how wonderful it felt to be young again, to do something so simple and silly, to laugh and play with a little girl who was so quiet a week before. When I lived it, I knew even then that the moment would last forever; I knew even then that I would miss being there even though I was still there. But I knew that, somewhere in space and time, the memory would always exist — we would always exist — just like that, just as we were that summer. I knew even then that the moment would last forever …”
MacDonald contemplated life as a simulation in which there is no such thing as the past, the present or the future; everything is happening simultaneously. If that were true, she said, “then I would never have to say goodbye. Nothing would remain a memory and I could have this life again. So this is not goodbye. We will meet again and again, love and live again, and this, our memories, will be more than enough.”
Keynote speakers Mark de Kanter (left) and Kathleen Devaney (right)
View more photos of commencement weekend on our Flickr account.
Keynote speakers Mark de Kanter (left) and Kathleen Devaney (right)
Keynote Address
White introduced commencement speakers Associate Head of School Mark de Kanter ’91, P’19, ’22 and Kathleen Devaney H’02, P’19, ’22 executive director of Horizons at Westminster. The long-serving faculty couple departed in June after a combined 51 years of service to the school. Devaney assumed her new position as head of school at The Hill School in Pottstown, Pa., on July 1.
White praised the couple for their many years of service to the school. “Mark and Kathleen are each remarkable educators, and their dedication to their craft, their commitment to creating community and their passion for working with young people, has shaped Westminster profoundly for the past 25 years,” said White.
Devaney and de Kanter were married in the chapel and raised two children on campus: Emmett ’19, a junior at Harvard University, and Samantha ’22, a first-year at Boston College.
Having taught AP Biology and virtually every other science course at Westminster during his tenure, de Kanter aptly began his address with an observation about earthworms.
“They are largely invisible to us until after a spring rain, when they rise out of the ground and migrate looking for a mate,” he said. “A healthy square meter of soil can contain 400 earthworms, and these blind, squishy creatures are essential to aerating and maintaining the health of the lush vegetation all around us.”
The worm migration has often prompted him to consider all that is happening around us that we can’t see, and to appreciate the value of what we can learn without traveling beyond our home, he said.
“Henry David Thoreau once wrote: ‘Far travel, very far travel or travail, comes near to the worth of staying at home,’” he said.
“I remember reading Thoreau’s words as a student at Westminster, back in a Baxter Academic Center cinder block classroom with Scott Reeves, and obviously I took that sentiment to heart that all I needed to learn about the world could be found right here, in Simsbury and on Williams Hill,” he said.
Similarly, he assured graduates that everything ahead of them will be reflections and expansions of what they have done at Westminster.
“You’re ready ... the Westminster microcosm has provided you insights into the wider world.”
He added that he has learned much from the students and expressed gratitude to past and present faculty colleagues.
Next, Devaney addressed the class and asked them to imagine that they were in college, gathered in a Westminster-style advisory. They might think about the habits and actions that served them well at Westminster, like being engaged, taking courses that interest them, working strategically, spending time with people who bring out the best in them, trying new things and being open to new perspectives.
She called on her colleagues who stood up and delivered familiar refrains to the class.
Academic Dean Betsy Heckman reminded them that “deadlines matter!”
Dean of Faculty Lee Huguley P’19, ’26 called out: “Keep moving forward.”
Dean of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Devonna Hall P’25 encouraged them to be “bold, courageous and be your absolute best.”
Math teacher and coach Nancy Urner-Berry ’81, P’11,’16 reminded them to “get out and get some exercise.”
In her parting comments, Devaney expressed gratitude to the Westminster community. “We could not be more grateful,” she said, adding that they will stay connected to the school.
“We aren’t leaving, just as you aren’t leaving,” she told the class. “We are commencing a new journey and our bags are well packed, and because we belong to this community, we will be forever a part of this family. So, 2023, bon voyage, travel well, experience much and we’ll see each other soon.”
View more photos of commencement weekend on our Flickr account.
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