CSW Celebrates its 125th Commencement Ceremony

The Cambridge School of Weston conferred diplomas to the graduating Class of 2011 at its commencement ceremony on June 10. This year's class is the 125th class to graduate from CSW since its founding 1886, and the 80th class to graduate from the school’s current home in Weston.
The Cambridge School of Weston conferred diplomas to the graduating Class of 2011 at its commencement ceremony on June 10. This year's class is the 125th class to graduate from CSW since its founding 1886, and the 80th class to graduate from the school’s current home in Weston.

To the sounds of Pachelbel's Kanon, the Class of 2011 processed from Garthwaite Center for Science and Art through a archway of stones and branches built by their peers and settled on the quad for the ceremony.

In her remarks to graduates, staff and faculty, to families and friends gathered under the tent on the quad, Jane Moulding, head of school, celebrated the 125 years of CSW’s “boundless ambition” and honored the school’s progressive education roots.

“The symbol of our school is the gryphon, our motto ‘Truth and Gentle Deeds,’” Jane said. “I hope that this graduating class will find a way to embrace all that is good about this mythical creature and all that power within themselves. And, like the gryphon, they will become agents of the pwer for good. Truth and Gentle Deeds – perhaps, that’s a tall order in our complex world, but you, seniors, you know where and what it gets you: trust, loyalty and love. Protect your treasure, kill the basilisks and fly proud!”

Ninety-three students received diplomas at the ceremony today, 72 of whom have been at the school all four years. Eight of the graduates consider their family homes in other countries: China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan.

This year, seniors elected classmates, Keaton Cameron-Burr ’11 of Natick, Mass. and Cheyenne Harvey ’11 of Cambridge, Mass., to speak on behalf of the graduating class. They also chose two history teachers, Doug Healy and Rachel Hirsch, to speak on behalf of the faculty.

“CSW lives inside all of us,” Keaton told the graduating class. “It will be with us forever, enduring deep beneath the surface of our beings as things and events remembered, hardship over the last four years endured, personal and collective growth, and learning. CSW lives on within us every time our experiences here shape our decision-making and our ways of being in the world. It will be there as we leave here today, as we leave our homes to make new ones, go to school, travel, grow up, and live our lives. Even if some of us may be ready to move on to the next thing, we cannot leave this place behind and that is something for which we will all be, in time, grateful.”

Cheyenne spoke of the impact of the people at CSW, particularly Robin Wood, the former theatre director who died during Cheyenne’s sophomore year, but had “listened more intently” to her than anyone she had known in her life.

She left her classmates with a final request: “Even if you did not end up finding someone at CSW who listens to you and inspires you the way that Robin greatly inspired me, keep looking for those people because sometimes they are in the least expected places and I promise they are always going to be worth holding onto. And more importantly, … I ask you all to do what you can to become those people for others. To listen like every word were the persons last and to talk like every syllable were your last.”

Rachel spoke of the importance and impact of the "first follower" and drew from a talk by Derek Sivers about the "shirtless, dancing guy," whose first follower helped spark a dance party. Without the first follower, the dancing guy would have have just been the "lone nut," but this first follower helped transform the lone nut into a leader.

Doug spoke of the power of stories and storytelling – and the responsibility we each have to take care of each other and to take active part in reshaping the stories of those who are hungry, suffering and exploited.

“We can’t wait for MLK or Gandhi to come fix it for us, or think that their stories only apply to back then and out there,” Doug told the graduating class. “So, use your brilliance and your luck – save the good old stories of love and equality and tell us all some new ones. We need them.”

As is tradition, faculty members were chosen by the graduating class to read their names and hand out their diplomas. This year, Jane Berkowitz, English, and Tom Evans, dean of faculty, read their names. Brian Walker, English; Lisa Hirsch, theatre; Ben Ibbetson, Spanish; Benjamin Goldstein, mathematics; Awa Diop, French and Spanish; Gary Hawley, science; Craig Dorfman, English; Marilyn Del Donno, science; Ted Munter, English; Todd Bartel, visual arts; and Tad Lawrence, science, handed out the diplomas.

Musical selections were performed by CSW faculty members, Michael Weinstein and Gustavo Brasil, and members of the CSW Senior Jazz Band.

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CSW—a gender-inclusive day and boarding school for grades 9-12—is a national leader in progressive education. We live out our values of inquiry-based learning, student agency, and embracing diverse perspectives in every aspect of our student experience. Young people come to CSW to learn how to learn and then put what they learn into action—essential skills they carry into their futures as doers, makers, innovators, leaders, and exceptional humans who do meaningful work in the world.