Falcons Take Flight

from FWCD Falconer - Summer 2021

From the Archives

Class of ’21 Graduation

By Caren Handleman | Photos by Glen Ellman

One of the most meaningful high school rituals is graduation. On May 14, the 86-member Fort Worth Country Day Class of 2021 walked across the stage of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary MacGorman Auditorium and received their diplomas. A major milestone held in person, with family and FWCD friends and faculty in attendance, it was a cherished, long-awaited moment of togetherness after a year of separation.

**Connor Brown, Paloma Casanova and Xavier Willars take in all the pomp and circumstance of the evening.**

As with all graduations, the faculty processed, followed by the soon-to-be graduates. Both excited and solemn, families eagerly looked for their students’ entrance, all of whom had decorated their mortarboards, some with their fall 2021 college and university destinations, others with quotes and artistic displays. “You have been through a lot. You have experienced more challenges in the last year-anda-quarter of school than any of us would ever have wanted for you,” said Head of School Eric Lombardi. “Savor the moment and relish in your accomplishments, individually and as a class.”

**Faith Darrow, Emma Pyron, Angela Avitia, Emi Carson and Caroline Korman display their decorated mortarboards.**

The class’s accomplishments are many, including:

• More than $11.6 million in merit-based scholarship and awards earned; over $2.7 million will be utilized

• 13 National Merit Scholars, Finalists, Commended, and the College Board Recognition Program National Hispanic Scholars

• 20 AP Scholars, AP Scholars with Honors, and AP Scholar with Distinction

• 1 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program Candidate (the only in Fort Worth and 1 of 140 in Texas)

• 1 Morehead-Cain Scholar and 1 Semifinalist

• 4 student-athletes signing to continue their athletics pursuits

• 580 college applications submitted

• 121 colleges and universities where students were admitted

• 47 colleges and universities that FWCD graduates will attend

• 56% of graduates will attend out-of-state colleges and universities

Each of the evening’s speakers shared meaningful and thoughtful remarks for the graduates’ consideration. Speakers included Randy Eisenman ’93, FWCD Board of Trustees President; Valedictorian Paloma Casanova, Ethan Hickman, class speaker; Salutatorian Andrew Nober; Sara Teegarden, Upper School History Teacher; Alexandra Stevens ’85, Alumni Association President; and Head of Upper School Alexis Stern.

**Jack Ethridge, Christopher Hoppe and Nate Webster share their graduation excitement.**

An FWCD tradition since 2014, each graduating class leaves a gift to the School. This year’s gift was designated for Upper School accessibility. To date, $4,719 has been collected. “Let our generation be identified as caretakers, as friends to all, as good people who stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves,” Casanova said in her valedictory address. “Our first step in demonstrating these values is seen through our class gift, a donation toward making accessibility improvements to the Upper School to support members of our community with physical disabilities.”

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the faculty stood and made their way out of the auditorium, followed by the newest Falcon alumni. The range of emotions, from joy to sadness, mixed with excitement and anticipation for the next phase of their lives, was on everyone’s faces – alumni, faculty, families. As everyone gathered in the foyer and on the patio, the conversations were lively and animated, sharing memories and making arrangements to stay in touch.

It was a fitting and heartfelt conclusion to the years of working together as students, artists and athletes and to this year as One FWCD. For more information about the Class of 2021 graduation, including additional stories, slideshows and videos, visit fwcd.org/graduation.

Paloma Casanova, Valedictorian

A National Hispanic Scholar and FWCD’s first MoreheadCain Scholar since 2013, Paloma Casanova joined the Falcon family in fifth grade. She will attend Yale University in the fall and plans to pursue the pre-med track with a concentration in neuroscience and psychology.

The holistic nature of FWCD’s approach added meaning and enrichment to Casanova’s eight years at the School. “The opportunities granted by this mindset have shaped me into the person I am today,” she said. Casanova fell in love with the arts, specifically FWCD’s Theatre Department and performed in five different productions. Ballet was her athletics passion. A Cum Laude member, Casanova fostered her intellectual curiosity, crediting many of her Upper School teachers with engaging her heart and mind inside and outside of the classroom.

Involved in several extracurricular activities, Casanova committed herself to Student Council at Country Day and served in some capacity for all eight years of her FWCD tenure. She cultivated her servant’s heart through TEAM Service and the community service-related initiatives the organization has undertaken in typical years and during the pandemic. “Giving back is important for community and individual growth,” she said. “This club allowed me to make an impact on a greater scale.”

Andrew Nober, Salutatorian

A National Merit Scholar and FWCD Cum Laude member, Andrew Nober is an FWCD Original. He will attend Harvard University in the fall.

Nober embraced FWCD’s time-honored 3A’s — academics, arts and athletics. He excelled in academically rigorous classes, cross country and track, and in band.“For me, the 3A’s meant that education was not limited to just what happens in the classroom. While I learned a lot from regular instruction, I do not feel like my experience at FWCD would have been complete without six years of band or athletics,” he said. “FWCD gave me an excellent academic education, but I feel that focusing on all 3A’s instead of just one is what makes me feel prepared for college and beyond.”

Nober earned the prestigious Eagle Scout rank. For his final project, Nober worked with the Martin Luther King, Jr., Community Center in Dallas to help build two large library carts so the staff could transport books from facility to facility. He also devoted hundreds of service hours as a Teen court lead attorney. As a prosecuting attorney, Andrew goes through all of the actions customarily conducted during an actual trial. The goal is to try to get his defendant assigned to as many community service hours as possible to help students who do not contest their infraction mitigate fees that they would otherwise have to pay as a result of their actions.

Words of Wisdom

Fort Worth Country Day is unique in that it provides an educational journey from kindergarten through 12th grade on one singular campus, meaning that students interact with each other many times.

~ Ethan Hickman ’21

Remember that being educated brings with it the responsibility of thinking critically and imagining creatively; being educated requires us to receive and offer knowledge to others; being educated means realizing that there will always be something left to learn, and that we will never know everything there is to know, as education does not confine itself to a scholarly setting but encompasses infinite facets that are seen through life. So, let’s all adopt the definition of education and apply it to our own worlds, our own lives.

~ Paloma Casanova ’21

So now, Class of 2021, I leave you with this closing call to action — seek meaningful relationships with the people who represent key aspects of the person you wish to become. Share your unique gifts and talents, sharpen your mind, and always surround yourself with people who inspire you to discover and unleash your infinite potential. As Falcon graduates, never forget that from here, you can go anywhere … especially if you choose wisely.

~ Randy Eisenman ’93

After tonight, all 86 of you may never be in the same place at the same time again, but you share a lifelong bond — your alma mater, Fort Worth Country Day. The campus is forever your home, the Country Day community is your family, and this family can be a tremendous support system for you when you need it.

~Alexandra Stevens ’85

I was in law school when I discovered a skill that became not only critical to my survival for those next three years, but also a constant in a chaotic world of facts and nuances. It brought me clarity, would allow me to harness all the information I was learning, to organize it and digest it, and use it to formulate arguments. It had structure, but the structure was still malleable; it could adapt. I could accumulate a massive amount of information and synthesize it for understanding in a larger context over a long period of time. It was an outline.

~ Sara Teegarden