Reflections, Hopes and Dreams: The Class of 2023

It was a night of reflection for the Class of 2023, as 93 students crossed the Southwestern Theological Baptist Seminary MacGorman Auditorium stage to grasp their diplomas. Graduation day conjures many emotions and touching memories, and each of the program’s speakers shared their sentiments, hopes and dreams for the class.

Salutatorian Matthew Lobo opened the ceremony, delivering a heartfelt invocation. “All of us here in the Class of 2023 have demonstrated greatness, excellence and every superlative you can think of …. One hundred percent of us overcame obstacles,” he said. “For some of us, the struggles have been much more significant. But here’s where the story gets good. We learned to believe in ourselves and the power to overcome.”

For Randy Eisenman ’93, this was his final duty as President of the Board of Trustees. “Reflecting on the last three decades since my graduation from Fort Worth Country Day, I am reminded of the senior quote I chose for my yearbook page. The quote is from country music star Garth Brooks, and it goes like this: ‘Life is not about the finish line; it’s about the chase,’” he said. “Today, this quote reminds me of the oftendebated question: What’s more important, the journey or the destination? To me, the answer is neither. It’s all about who is traveling with you on your journey.”

The class’s 13-year journey to this bittersweet milestone moment can be summed up through relationships: friendships with their peers, bonds with faculty and staff members, and a network of adults who care deeply for them. “I hope that when you reflect on our time together, you’ll remember it as being about more than just the content,” said Upper School History Teacher Andrew Thomas, this year’s student-selected faculty speaker. “Whether you were a student of mine or one that simply greeted me around the Upper School, our days have always been about the relationships we nurtured and the experiences we shared.”

Seth Mayhue earned the honor of being the valedictory speaker. He chose to reminisce with the class and set forth a challenge. “Across all of our collective experiences, we learned through numerous mistakes and questionable decisions the importance of demonstrating responsibility, scholarship, courage, respect, integrity and kindness in every aspect of our lives. These values are what separate the Falcons from every other mascot unlucky enough to face us on the field,” he said. “These values are intrinsic in every member of the Country Day community, but especially in the graduating Class of 2023. The only challenge I have for you all is to keep going

“You will show the responsibility necessary to make it to every class (even the 8 a.m. ones); the scholarship necessary to expand your knowledge even when you don’t have to; the courage necessary to make the most of your time on campus; the respect necessary to forge lasting relationships with peers and faculty; the integrity necessary to stay true to your own, unique identities; and the kindness necessary to make strangers feel welcome in your presence,” Mayhue added. “Having graduated from Country Day, your values and instincts alone will be enough to sustain you as you embark on your next journey. So that's my challenge: keep going.”

Senior class elected speaker Vivian Todora acknowledged graduation as both an end and a beginning. “It is the beginning of 93 amazing people leaving their high school and entering the next phase of their lives. I can confidently say that I have no doubts about your future successes,” she said. “Each and every one of you is talented enough to achieve whatever it is you want from life, and I cannot wait to see the impact you will leave on the world. Class of 2023, I hope you know how much I love you.”

Head of School Eric Lombardi relishes the opportunity to address the graduates each year. This year, his speech invoked traveling. “I hope, Class of 2023, that you are travelers and not tourists through your college years and through your long lives. The traveler and the tourist look at the same muddy puddle on the road in front of them in two very different ways,” he shared. “The tourist wants to avoid the mud, and they navigate around the puddles. The traveler, on the other hand, sees the muddy puddle as an opportunity to get dirty in the stuff of real life. They jump in and worry about cleaning up later. I hope that when you come across the muddy puddles of college and life after college, you will jump in and get dirty.”

Each year since 2014, FWCD’s senior class has donated a “senior gift” that funds a cause of their choice. As Head of Upper School Peggy Wakeland read each graduate’s name, they came forward for their diploma and dropped an envelope in a basket. This year’s class gave more than $6,500 on the day of their commencement to purchase a new piece of playground equipment for FWCD’s Lower School.

Asad Dean ’90 delivered parting words and a little music to the new graduates. “As you get ready to diverge, remember that Country Day will always be a place to converge. Through gatherings, athletic and art activities, lectures and events, you will always have opportunities to reconnect with your alma mater,” Dean said. “After last year’s commencement address, I began searching for the spark that would serve as the catalyst for my remarks to this special group of Falcons. That spark came when I listened to Swedish House Mafia’s ‘For You.” Graduates, today is about, because of and for you. Fort Worth Country Day will always be there for you, too!”

Class of 2023 By the Numbers

FWCD’s 93 graduates in the Class of 2023 earned more than $10.5 million in merit-based scholarships. They were accepted to a total of 121 colleges and universities and have committed to attend 44 of them, where they will utilize more than $2.1 million of the scholarship money offered at their attending colleges. Fifty-six percent of the senior class will attend college outside Texas in the fall, with 44 percent staying in-state.

Additional Class of 2023 highlights include:

● Seventeen seniors were named National Merit Scholars, Finalists, Commended, and/or College Board Recognition Programs Scholars.

● Sixteen seniors were named AP Scholars, AP Scholars with Honor or AP Scholars with Distinction awards.

● Eighty-five percent of FWCD’s senior class received merit-based college scholarships or awards.

● Twenty-five percent of the graduating class will attend the most selective colleges/universities in the

U.S., where 20% or fewer applicants are admitted, including Carnegie Mellon University, Duke University, Northwestern University, UCLA, the University of Virginia and Stanford University.

● Six seniors will become collegiate athletes, including:

○ Three competing on the track and field teams at Stanford University, Cornell University and Oklahoma State University.

○ One competing on the golf team at the University of Oklahoma.

○ One playing baseball at Sewanee: The University of the South.

○ One playing field hockey at Wake Forest University.

● Three seniors will attend colleges for fine arts, including:

○ One continuing their studies in music production/music business at Berklee

College of Music.

○ Two studying interior design and musical theatre at Savannah College of Art and Design.

● Three seniors will attend Ivy League schools, with one attending Cornell University, one attending Dartmouth College, and one attending the University of Pennsylvania.

● A total of 10 FWCD alumni from the classes of 2020-23 will attend five of the eight Ivies in the fall, including Cornell University (2), Dartmouth College, Harvard University (3), the University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University (3).