Commencement

June 14 & 15, 2021

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PHOTOS

1. Sara Phillips ’21 and Renee Pascoe ’21 enjoy a moment after the ceremony. 2. Suzanne Walsh ’87 delivers the keynote address. 3. Layla Abid ’21, Morgan Lindstead ’21, Mia Alonge ’21, and

Sarah Mahoney ’21 enjoy a moment after the ceremony. 4. Julia Zacher ’21 receives her diploma. 5. Shriya Suresh ’21 celebrates with her parents.

Albany Academy for Girls

This year’s Albany Academy for Girls commencement speaker, Suzanne Walsh ’87, stood before the Class of 2021 with bright insights, advice, and a sprinkling of humor to keep her audience interested and entertained.

At the start of her remarks, Suzanne reflected on the reality of her year of quarantine as less than ideal: a bad sleep schedule, too much time spent at her desk, and attendance at far too many meetings. She reflected, “I didn’t spend a lot of time resting. I didn’t spend a lot of time taking care of myself,” which led her into the primary message of her speech: “Do not think you can make great decisions when you’re not rested, when you haven’t taken care of yourself.”

Suzanne insisted that a sufficient amount of sleep and downtime allows individuals to make better creative connections and make those great decisions. She then focused on the importance of allowing for space and time to be creative and to daydream, “which some of you are doing right now.” The comment earned her a good deal of laughter. She pushed forward describing how Albany Academy for Girls “has burrowed itself into your soul” and how it personally has come back to “haunt” her in positive ways.

The charismatic Suzanne spoke about how failure, such as failing French class the first semester of her freshman year at AAG, has taught her to be what she calls “anti-fragile,” essentially how to not only bounce back from low moments, but bounce back having learned something.

Toward the end of her speech, Suzanne summarized her message very eloquently: “All of your moments at AAG will come back to inform your life, and your work. As you move forward, your subconscious and your soul will speak to you.” She left a sparkling imprint on the 2021 Albany Academy for Girls commencement, the cherry on top of a celebratory day.

1. Bryce Henkel ’21 helps Justin Haverly ’21 with his tie. 2. Graduates enjoy a moment after the ceremony. 3. Tom Tuttle ’84 delivers the keynote address. 4. Eli Thoma ’21 shakes Bob Bischoff’s hand. 5. Valedictorian Alex Shi Li ’21 celebrates with his parents. 6. Jay Manish Madan ’21 delivers his Salutatory speech.

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The Albany Academy

Tom Tuttle ’84, the 2021 commencement speaker for The Albany Academy, stood before the graduating class and shared a plethora of informative, personal stories dashed with a meaningful commonality throughout. Tom detailed the many ups and downs and varied jobs he has experienced, and told of surprising opportunities he encountered that left him wondering what he really wanted to do with his life, but in the best way possible.

“You win by being in the game. Playing the game of life is the greatest and most fun game you can play,” he said, concluding that this time of transition in the graduates’ lives is an important one. He compared his decision making to that of Robert Frost’s famous The Road Not Taken poem in that when two roads diverged in the woods, he always took the path less traveled. Tom never wavered in the clarity of his messages, and earned some laughs from the crowd, drawing and keeping their attention with ease.

The most notable takeaway from this speech can only properly be expressed through Tom’s own words: “You will be bombarded with advice over the next few years; you’ll be told to find your passion, do what you love, follow your heart… But most of you don’t have a passion and don’t know what your heart wants. Don’t worry. It is unlikely you will have found your passion when you graduate from college as well. Here’s the trick: view the journey as the passion. Grab every opportunity and give it your all.”