Congratulations, Class of 2023!
On Saturday, May 27, St. Andrew's Episcopal School graduated the class of 2023, welcoming our newest class of alumni. The air was filled with a palpable sense of excitement and pride as students, families, friends, and faculty gathered to honor the achievements of the newest alumni.
The class of 2023 selected Dr. Andrew Forrester and William Sykes to be their faculty and senior speakers, respectively. Dr. Forrester spoke to the graduates about the joy of continuous learning, the importance of being content with uncertainty, and the power of community.
“If you have a question, someone has had that question before. If you have a complicated feeling, someone has felt that feeling before. What a gift. You may not always land on an answer, or a solution, but you’ll never be alone in looking for it. This goes for the things we learn about ourselves, too. We are part of a great, ever expanding exchange of ideas and emotions and hopes and challenges, and that is at least part of what it means to be human: to want something—knowledge, love, justice, beauty—and to do that wanting alongside others who feel the same way. To be singular in who you are and unified with others who share a similar purpose.”
William Sykes, selected by his peers, reflected on the supportive community found at St. Andrew’s, the joyful moments and achievements shared by the class of 2023, and the importance of embracing the unknown without fear.
“Any time that you are afraid of being known and seen and found lacking, you know from our experience here that you can be seen and known and loved. We are a place that carries you through the good and the bad, the highs and the lows, the beautiful and the terrible by the strength we receive here, with each other. Because you know what it is to be loved instead of to be found lacking, you don’t have to just keep that knowledge in your heart. You can share it with others, bringing yourself and your whole community into a greater sense of belonging, purpose, and life wherever you reside in the future. By seeing, knowing, and loving others, in a very real way, our St. Andrew’s community can be carried into every community we go into from here. On our graduation day, this is what it means to be called to love.”
As the ceremony drew to a close, students proudly received their diplomas, symbolizing the culmination of years of hard work, dedication, and personal growth. The Class of 2023 is a special one. With the beginning of their Upper School experience fractured by the pandemic, they were critical in the rebuilding of Upper School community and culture. They have excelled in their pursuits as scholars, athletes, artists, and servants. They have been a class to look up to, a class that models excellence in all they do.
Congratulations to the class of 2023! We can’t wait to see the adventures and achievements in your future – please know that you always have a home at St. Andrew’s.
Class of 2023 Graduation Awards:
Class of 2023 Graduation Awards:
The History Awards
JOLIE GRABS & NATE SABO
The English Awards
EVAN ALLBRITTON, ANNA BERRY, & WILLIAM SYKES
The Packwood Math Awards
LUCY WARD, MARK GREENBERG, & RACHEL KILGARD
The Science Awards
ZOIE JAIMES, NATE SABO, & LUCY WARD
The Mandarin Language Award
EMMA KIM
The Spanish Language Award
TOMMY BULLION
The Latin Language Award
ISAAC HILTON
The Religious Studies Award
ANTHONY TASSONE
The Warren Dickson Instrumental Music Award
KARSTEN LYLE & WILLIAM SYKES
The Warren Dickson Vocal Music Award
JACOB BURROWS & MEREDITH SHAW
The Theatre Discipline Award
ARWYN HEILRAYNE & MEREDITH SHAW
The Technical Theatre Discipline Award
KATIE BRADLEY
The Senior Yearbook Award
JULIETTE HUGGINS & PAIGE KIPKE
The Susan Kemner-Reed Visual Arts Award
KATE FASON & NAOMI REMINGTON
The Kethan Kumar Filmmaking Award
EMMA DAVIS & MARY LOUISA DONOGHUE
The Artist Award
KELLY CAROLAN & HARRISON CAUTHEN
The Athlete Awards
WILLIAM DUNAWAY & ELLA TOWNSEND
The Scholar Awards
NADIA HSU & LUCY WARD
The Scott Field Bailey Servant Award
ANNIE LI
The Faculty Prize
This award is given to that student whose curiosity, positive energy, and supportive attitude consistently improve the classroom experience for fellow students and for teachers, regardless of discipline. This student’s presence, the faculty agrees, is a tide that lifts all boats.
KELLY CAROLAN
The Hilary H. Carlson Award
By charting a path of dramatic growth throughout their individual high school journey, this senior exemplifies the tenacity and composure of the founder of the Upper School, Hilary H. Carlson.
EVAN ALLBRITTON
The Cornerstone Award
Established to commemorate the pioneering Class of 2002, the Cornerstone Award recognizes that outstanding senior whose principled audacity and original thinking push the school to be a better version of itself.
ARWYN HEILRAYNE
The Lucy Collins Nazro Award
Created to honor former Head of School Lucy Collins Nazro in recognition of her love of this school and her ability to unite and inspire others, this award goes to that remarkable senior who contributes in thoughtful ways to improve the life of the St. Andrew’s community.
CULLEN DAWKINS & ANNIE ZIMMERMAN
The St. Andrew Award
The Episcopal tradition values employing the head and the heart in all that we do. Both are essential to encouraging people to love themselves, love their neighbors, and serve the deep needs of the world. Through our common life together, St. Andrew’s fosters a sense of each person’s belovedness and the desire to “strive for justice and peace among all people, and to respect the dignity of every human being.” The winner of this award embodies the spirit of our school’s foundation.
WILLIAM SYKES
