COMMENCEMENT 2023

‘Always Full of Heart’

The last students to recall a pre-pandemic Lawrenceville, the Class of 2023 navigated a fragmented journey to come full circle by Commencement.

HEY WERE THE LAST CLASS AT LAWRENCEVILLE TO REMEMBER “BEFORE,” that almost naïve time before a worldwide pandemic cleaved their Second Form year in two. In those tentative early months, they were just learning to interrogate the truth around the Harkness table, absorbing the meaning of “House,” and laying the foundations for what would become lifelong friendships. Then they departed for spring break in 2020 without the full realization that it was the last time the members of Class of 2023 would see one another in person for nearly six months.

But even scattered around the globe, the Class of 2023 still had heart. Shaped by uncertainty but tempered by their resilience and adaptability, they authored their own unique story. By the time they received their diplomas at Commencement on May 28, their daily lives once again largely resembled the kind they had anticipated upon entering Lawrenceville in 2019, but their history wasn’t anchored completely within these familiar gates.

“For us, looking back at Lawrenceville isn’t reminiscing about one place. Scattered away from the place we wanted to be by the pandemic, we all tried our best to do Lawrenceville from the vantage point of different locations and time zones,” said Satvik Dasariraju ’23 in his valedictory address in the Bowl, shielded from the sun by a massive white 320-by-100-foot pole tent. “Despite the swirl of uncertainty and loneliness at those times, the heart of this school still beat on. Even more, Lawrenceville for us means something entirely different from a single, linear story.”

Dasariraju, who will study human developmental and regenerative biology at Harvard, pointed toward the distinct eras of their time as students that were shaped by the pandemic.

“In some ways, our time here has been fragmented. There are moments that cut up our time here into befores and afters,” he said. “Even though I’m meant to look forward, I want to acknowledge and honor this unprecedented, complex, and undoubtedly formative period in our lives.”

Head of School Stephen S. Murray H’54 ’55 ’63 ’65 ’16 P’16 ’21 presented the Edward Sutliff Brainard Prize, given annually by the faculty to the Fifth Form student whom it holds in the highest esteem, to Jack Patel ’23. On behalf of the Board of Trustees, Murray also presented the Trustees’ Cup, recognizing that student who has most influenced the School for good, to Madeline Laws ’23. He also recognized the three members of the class who will attend service academies in the fall: Benjamin Reiland ’23, who accepted his appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, and Madeleine Rygh ’23 and Robert Simone ’23, who will attend the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. Andrew Chen and Dasariraju will be a part of the ROTC programs at Vanderbilt and Harvard, respectively.

In his remarks, Murray acknowledged the uncertain times in which the Class of 2023 experienced Lawrenceville.

“You have navigated difficult waters with remarkable persistence, courage, and grace. In your time here, you have demonstrated a determination to prevail, unsure of yourselves at times, I suspect, but always full of heart,” he said. “And in doing so, you acquired resilience and a kind of wisdom that many adults never quite attain. I am certain that you will take with you this wise understanding of the world and you will find the success that suits you.” n