One of the reasons why addressing you on this day of days is such an utter privilege is that I know what a brilliant, diverse, engaged, curious bunch of people you are. I have talked to your teachers. I have talked to some of you. I have heard the stories. Graduations are so momentous not just because of what has been achieved today but because of the accumulation of what will be achieved in the future. Look around you, seniors. Your classmates will go on to study and unravel the human genome, to write novels and hilarious television shows, to argue cases in front of the Supreme Court, to find new and miraculous ways to keep the kitty litter inside the kitty litter box. We look at you, seniors, and we see a world that will change because of you. (No pressure or anything.)
But you graduate into an increasingly complex world in which you are constantly being bombarded with distractions, each piece of media begging for that last ounce of your precious attention. Over the course of my brief life, I have witnessed the rise of myriad technologies designed to simplify our lives, to entertain us, to bring us closer together. Email was just becoming popular when I first arrived at Milton. No one had a cell phone. Text messaging did not even exist. Now we send almost five billion text messages to each other every single day. I am not going to stand up here and say, “I remember when we used to write letters and everyone spoke like Abraham Lincoln and soda cost a nickel.” No, I’m not going to do this because soda did not cost a nickel, and this kind of nostalgic hand-wringing gets us nowhere. But what I will say is that Milton has done an amazing job of preparing you for this world of media saturation because it has taught you what I believe to be the single most critical skill one can have in life: the ability to listen. You were lucky enough to have great teachers here, and great teachers are defined by their ability to listen, react, adjust, respond to their students. Teachers are hero listeners. But in this world, even the ability to listen to others is not enough. Milton has given you something even more important, even more intimate than this: the ability to listen to one’s self.
For example, in my own life, a life in which I attempt to conjure novels about things I know little to nothing about, such as growing up in colonial Cambodia or surviving WWII in arctic Norway, I spend my mornings writing, sitting in my chair for hours. There are no secrets to writing novels, only time and persistence and a little more time. And while showing up each day is important, I believe the most critical part of my day isn’t even the time I spend in the chair. It is in the afternoon, after I leave my office. Every day I go for a jog or sometimes a walk with my dog through the woods. I try not to bring along my headphones. I reach for them, but then I put them away. This is because I want to leave room for my brain to marinate on what I’ve just written. And as I walk through the woods, I start to make these connections between previously disparate ideas, and I begin to realize what it was I was trying to write in the first place. But this process cannot be rushed. We all know that feeling of sitting down to write a paper and not knowing what it is we’re trying to say. Well, figuring out what you want to say takes time. As our lives fill up with business, with texting and twittering and commentary about the commentary, the first things to go are these subtle moments of reflective quiet, because their fruits are often not apparent in the short term. But they are critical. So this is my first piece of advice: Keep listening, leave room for the quiet. Take a walk each day and study the curves in the path.
The whole “walk a day” thing, however, might prove a little tricky, because your lives are about to change drastically: Many of you are off to college in the fall. Some of you are wisely taking a year off to go fi nd yourself, and some of you are building a high-tech flying suit of metal so as to fight crime and flirt with Gwyneth Paltrow. Hold on…what? Oh, that was the movie I just saw last night… Anyway, I am excited for all of you. Freshman year in college is an amazing, eye-opening, very busy time, a time of realizing the only really important rules are the ones that you set for yourself. Many of you have already made some plans of what you want to study in college. And this is all fine and dandy. We like plans. But don’t plan too hard. Leave room to be surprised. This is a good rule of thumb.
Excerpted from the speech that author Reif Larsen ’98 delivered to the graduating Class of 2011 at their commencement on June 10, 2011.
Milton Academy 2011 Awards and Prizes
Cum Laude
Class I
Mariam Agaeva
Marco Joseph Barber Grossi
Alice Hampe Becker
Michael Joshua Berke
Angela Stephanie Berkowitz
Nikita Bhasin
Rachel Lamb Black
Emma Rose Isabel Xiangling Borden
Katherine Claire Caine
Michael Scott Char
Sidney Xiande Chiang
Elias Ibrahim Dagher
Delger Erdenesanaa
Jasmine Yumei Gale
Kunal Shaan Jasty
Naveen Mohan Jasty
Samuel Thomas Karlinski
Richard Guo Kong
Cameron Robert Lamoureux
Ariana Gharib Lee
Carolyn Jones Lee
Yoona Lee
Elisabeth Isuyo Makishima
*Samantha Hanae Noh
Caroline Herrmann Owens
Jaclyn Duker Porfi lio
Henry Joseph Russell
*Daniel Aaron Schwartz
Madeline Marie Thayer
Satto Tonegawa
Victoria Blair Trippe
Jackson Lok Tin Tse
Farzan Vafa
Joycelyn Kay Yip
Class II
Gina Micaela Starfi eld
*elected to Cum Laude in 2010
The Head 0f School Award
The Head of School Award is presented each year to honor and celebrate certain members of Class I for their demonstrated spirit of self-sacrifice, community concern, leadership, integrity, fairness, kindliness, and respect for others.
Ashley Elizabeth Bair
Rachel Lamb Black
Sidney Xiande Chiang
Daniel Gibson Merenich
Andrew Enyinna Nwachuku
Joseph Leonard Reynolds
Kaitlyn Carolyn Stazinski
Charles Moorfi eld Storey
The James S. Willis Memorial Award
To the Headmonitors
Robert Bedetti
Katherine Claire Caine
William Bacon
Lovering Award
To a boy and a girl, chosen by their classmates, who have helped most by their sense of duty to perpetuate the memory of a gallant gentleman and officer.
Doriane Ahia
Benjamin Rhodes Hawkins
The Louis Andrews Memorial Scholarship Award
To a student in Class II who has best fulfilled his or her potential in the areas of intelligence, self-discipline, physical ability, concern for others and integrity.
Jesse Daniel Francese
The Frank D. Millet Scholarship Award
To a student who demonstrates moral integrity, supports classmates, and has established meaningful relationships with peers and faculty. The Millet scholar, by virtue of character and deeds, is an integral member of his or her class and shows great promise as a leader.
Travis Cody Sheldon
The Leo Maza Award
Awarded to a student or students in Classes I–IV, who, in working within one of the culture or identity groups at the School, has made an outstanding contribution to the community by promoting the appreciation of that group throughout the rest of the School.
Jovonna Mara Jones
Ainikki-Helena Riikonen
The H. Adams Carter Prize
Awarded to the student or students who, in their years at Milton, have shown a dedication to the pursuit of outdoor skills, demonstrated strong leadership, and reached high levels of personal achievement in one or more outdoor activities.
Sarah Rose Kechejian
Caroline Herrmann Owens
Diana Faith Perry
The A. Howard Abell Prize
Established by Dr. and Mrs. Eric Oldberg for students deemed exceptionally proficient or talented in instrumental or vocal music or in composition.
Elias Ibrahim Dagher
Samuel Thomas Karlinski
Harrison Otis Apthorp Music Prize
Awarded in recognition of helpful activity in furthering in the School an interest and joy in music.
Jovonna Mara Jones
Ariana Gharib Lee
The George Sloan Oldberg Memorial Prize
Awarded in memory of George Oldberg ’54, to members of the School who have been a unique influence in the field of music.
Rachelle Elizabeth
Alfred Thomas
Andrew Beaudoin, Jr.
The Science Prize
Awarded to students who have demonstrated genuine enthusiasm, as well as outstanding scientific ability in physics, chemistry and biology.
Naveen Mohan Jasty
Samuel Thomas Karlinski
Cameron Robert Lamoureux
Yoona Lee
Diana Faith Perry
Satto Tonegawa
Victoria Blair Trippe
The Wales Prize
Awarded in honor of Donald Wales, who taught Class IV science for more than 36 years. It recognizes students in Class IV who have consistently demonstrated interest and excitement in science.
Theodore Alastair Bastian
Olivia Rose Berman
Nathaniel David Bresnick
Anna Elizabeth Lachenauer
Rubye Peyser
Daisy Eliza Walker
Victoria Hope Saunders White
The Robert Saltonstall Medal
For pre-eminence in physical efficiency and observance of the code of the true sportsman.
Dennis John Clifford
The A.O. Smith Prize
Awarded by the English department to students who display unusual talent in non-fiction writing.
John Henry Guest Mitchell
The Critical Essay Prize
Awarded by the English department for the best essay about a work or works of literature.
Daniel Aaron Schwartz
The Markham and Pierpont Stackpole Prize
Awarded in honor of two English teachers, father and son, to authors of unusual talent in creative writing.
Lillie Marie LaRochelle
Charlotte Alden Malone
The Dorothy J. Sullivan Award
To senior girls who have demonstrated good sportsmanship, leadership, dedication and commitment to athletics at Milton. Through
their spirit, selflessness and concern for the team, they served as an incentive and a model for others.
Diana Faith Perry
The Donald Cameron Duncan Prize For Mathematics
Awarded to students in Class I who have achieved excellence in the study of mathematics while demonstrating the kind of love of the subject and joy in promoting its understanding that will be the lasting legacy of Donald Duncan’s extraordinary contributions to the teaching of mathematics at Milton.
Cameron Robert Lamoureux
Samantha Hanae Noh
The Performing Arts Award
Presented by the performing arts department for outstanding contributions in production work, acting, speech, audiovisuals, and dance throughout his or her Milton career.
Ashley Elizabeth Bair
Julia Celeste Brown
Sidney Xiande Chiang
N’Dea Michelle Hallett
Ian Michael Kernohan
Daniel John Lamere
Elisabeth Isuyo Makishima
John Henry Guest Mitchell
Joseph Leonard Reynolds
The Kiki Rice-Gray Prize
Awarded for outstanding contributions to Milton performing arts throughout his or her career in both performance and production.
Rachelle Elizabeth Alfred
Zhen Zhen Chen
The Priscilla Bailey Award
To a senior girl who has been a most valuable asset to Milton Academy athletics and to the Milton Academy community—an athlete who has demonstrated exceptional individual skills and teamwork, as well as true sportsmanship.
Kaitlyn Carolyn Stazinski
The Henry Warder Carey Prize
To members of the First Class, who, in public speaking and oral interpretation, have shown consistent effort, thoroughness of preparation, and concern for others.
Elisabeth Isuyo Makishima
The Robert L. Daley Prize
Created by his students of 1984 in his memory and honor, this prize in Classics is awarded to the student from Latin 4 or beyond who best exemplifies Mr. Daley’s love of languages.
Elias Ibrahim Dagher
The Richard Lawrence Derby Memorial Award
To an outstanding student of the Second Class in mathematics, astronomy or physics.
Kathryn Margaret Broderick
Vincent Churchward Kennedy
Juwon Kim
Brian Loeber Trippe
Keyon Vafa
Skyler Zee Williams
The Alfred Elliott Memorial Trophy
For self-sacrifice and devotion to the best interests of his teams, regardless of skill.
Michael James Godwin
The Gorham Palfrey Faucon Prize
Established in 1911 and awarded to members of Class I for demonstrated interest and outstanding achievement in history and social science.
Jackson Lok Tin Tse
The Benjamin Fosdick Harding Latin Prizes
Awarded on the basis of a separate test at each prize level.
Level 5: Edward John Gerard
Richardson
Level 4: Javon Micah Ryan
Level 3: Titania Thanh Nguyen
The Modern Languages Prizes
Awarded to those students who, in the opinion of the department, most exhibit the qualities of academic excellence, enthusiastic participation, and support of fellow students, both in and out of class.
Thomas Andrew Beaudoin, Jr.
Rachel Lamb Black
Carolyn Jones Lee
Brittany Norrgard Miller
Caroline Herrmann Owens
The Milton Academy Art Prizes
Awarded for imagination and technical excellence in his or her art and for independent and creative spirit of endeavor.
Rachel Lamb Black
Genevieve Searls DeGroot
Jovonna Mara Jones
Samantha Hanae Noh
Gregor Willcox Seidman