COMMENCEMENT
Seniors had the opportunity to participate in the traditional walk across the stage in the Center for the Performing Arts on May 17.
The Class of 2020 enjoyed a nostalgic drive through campus at the first-ever Senior Mobile Recognition Ceremony on May 18.
Celebrating the Magnificat Class of 2020
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hen the Class of 2020 began their Magnificat journey four years ago, no one could have predicted that it would end with their last semester of school being canceled due to a worldwide pandemic. In the face of such reality, the Class of 2020 demonstrated strength, resilience, and grace as they completed their final Magnificat milestones, and the entire community came together to creatively celebrate their accomplishments in new ways.
The first task was reimagining what the Commencement ceremony would look like. Recognizing the importance of the traditional walk across the stage in the Center for the Performing Arts, faculty and staff designed a modified ceremony on Sunday, May 17 in which each graduate and two guests were permitted in the theater at a time. Each graduate was given a single red rose, donated by Magnificat alumnae,
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to represent the dozen red roses they would carry in the traditional Commencement ceremony. Graduates had their names read by Dean of Student Life and Formation, Mrs. Mary Therese Dwyer-Kueller, received their diplomas from Dean of Faculty and Academics, Ms. Marilyn Arundel ’76, as they walked across the stage, and posed for a graduation portrait. The following morning, Monday, May 18, senior parents gathered at the school in the rain to decorate the route for the first-ever Magnificat Senior Mobile Recognition Ceremony, which would take place that afternoon. The skies cleared as the Class of 2020 gathered at St. Christopher Parish to begin their celebratory and emotional drive to and through campus. The church bells tolled as they received a blessing from Sr. Helen Jean Novy, HM, and words of encouragement and pride from President Moira Clark ’77. Faculty, staff,
MAGNIFICAT MAGAZINE | A MAGAZINE FOR ALUMNAE AND FRIENDS OF MAGNIFICAT HIGH SCHOOL | SUMMER/FALL 2020
