West '22 Speeches & Awards

Aside from things like this, there are plenty of other things that come to mind, but what stands out the most is that this class is exceptionally good at coming together to support one another. I have seen this in tragedy as a mourner. I have seen this in sports as a coach or fan. I have seen this in extracurriculars as a supporter, and I have seen this in the classroom as their teacher. 

Among everything else going on in the world, (global pandemic, hybrid and online learning) our Sturgis community has had its fair share of tragedies. I know this is a day of celebration, so many of us don’t want to think about things that are sorrowful, however, I think talking about these things will only further highlight just how supportive the class of 2022 has been in getting through the past year in particular.

We lost one of our math teachers this school year, Michelle King. I know this hits home for so many of our faculty, administration, and graduates, and I would be remiss to not mention the astounding impact Ms. King had on our school by touching the lives of so many. When I think of this very emotional time for our Sturgis community though, I can’t help but think of how much this class was there to support each other. Some were affected more than others, and it was clear that every single one of them was willing to be a shoulder to cry on. Even seeing the amazing amount of her students that attended her funeral on a Friday snow day, just goes to show that this class is there for each other again, and again. The loss of life is not something that is easily handled, but even in darkness, this class was able to find light in one another.

Additionally, in the fall, we had two separate incidences of hate speech graffitied on the boys’ bathroom walls. This was a different type of sadness for our community, but what I want to shine a light on is the outpouring of love and empathy that happened as a result of this. The bathrooms and halls were decorated with messages of support and belonging. Many teachers and students addressed this within their classrooms, too. I specifically remember having a space in my senior classrooms to have these difficult conversations, and to share the floor with those who were willing to voice their feelings. These conversations showcased the amount of maturity the class of 2022 is able to have, and that they are truly good people who are going out into the world with big hearts and care for others.

But the class of 2022 doesn’t only show their best side when they are in mourning or in darkness. When it comes to extracurriculars and sports, the class of 2022 always shows up. I have seen so many of this graduating class support each other at theatre performances (including when Ian brought Dunkin to everyone at METG). I’ve seen groups of students help when say… Sturgis springs a leak and theatre set pieces start to get soaked. There is always a helping hand within reach.

In my years as both a student and faculty member at Sturgis, I have also never seen the gargantuan crowds that show up to sporting events like I have from this group. I don’t think we’ve had a single sporting event that didn’t have a crowd of seniors there to cheer on their fellow student-athletes. In particular, senior nights for sports are always memorable, but for the boys’ varsity basketball team, I’d argue it was unforgettable. —-For those of you who know JJ, he needs no introduction. JJ was pulled up from JV to play varsity basketball on senior night as it was going to be his last high school game. In the last 10 seconds of the game, JJ was fouled and was allowed to take two foul shots. Let me paint you a picture- JJ goes up to the line as our entire crowd of students is quiet (arguably the quietest they’ve ever been), JJ locks in on the hoop for his second shot, and to finish the senior game, JJ makes the last shot! I truly cannot express to you all the joy and support that poured out of the student section- it was electric and it was contagious. 

Now, when I talk about the class of 2022 coming together to support one another in the classroom, I’m definitely not talking about group projects… 

What I am talking about though, is Connections. Connections is something we do to start my class every day; it is an opportunity for students to share basically anything outloud with the class, that they feel comfortable. On the rare occasion… these would be normal. Andrew came into our class one day with a busted eye and a large scrape on his face. I, of course, had already received an email about what had happened, but Andrew decided to share a different story with our E block class during Connections. He shared that he got in a fight with several rats living under his shed, and that they were only getting bigger by the day. He later told us all the real story, but the rat story received several spotlights during connections throughout the year. 

I also remember a time when I had left my room to grab something from the printer during my G block class. We were working on the different ways to handle solid domestic waste (or trash), and we had gone through 3 out of 4 of the methods that are suggested. I, of course, quietly crept back to the classroom (y’know, because that’s how teachers catch students off task), and to my surprise, Lucas Pinheiro and Will Nicolai had taken over my place as teacher, and were teaching their peers all about compost when I returned to the room.

You may think these two anecdotes are totally random because, they kind of are. But my point here is that, students would not feel comfortable sharing the whacky things going on in their lives, or getting up in front of the rest of the class and trying to teach each other (even though I didn’t ask them to!!)  if they did not feel supported by one another in our class. 

*interjection from Siobhan*

“Ms. Lyons, what does this have to do with real life?”

Thanks for keeping me on track, Siobhan.

If you weren’t paying attention during this time, what these stories should’ve told you is that the class of 2022 is incredibly skilled at coming together to support one another, whatever the circumstances. What I didn’t tell you all when I got up here, is that I have an incredibly huge, irrational fear of public speaking. Most of my students know this because I have been nauseous for weeks over giving this speech. I share this with you all because I want you to know why my hands are shaking so much, but also because, I want you to know that I wouldn’t have agreed to give this speech if it weren’t for the support from these students. 

Despite the fact that you all will likely be with many new people next year, I hope you never lose, forget, or overlook, the power that coming together and supporting each other can have. 

Thank you and congratulations class of 2022! 

Kieron Nutbrown*

 Good morning everyone.

First of all, I’d like to say thank you very much to the class of ’22 for inviting me to speak today. As a relatively shy member of faculty, I wonder if it was perhaps one last practical joke at my expense, but in any case, it’s a great honor to be up here. After everything we’ve been through together in the past few years, it’s fantastic to see all of you out here on this beautiful Cape Cod day. It’s also wonderful to see our school community of faculty, administrators, and of course all our families. It turns out there’s quite a few of you.

To those of you who’ve never heard me before, you might be able to surmise I’m not originally from around these parts. In fact, I arrived in this country from England five years ago, and I joined Sturgis in the fall of 2019, while these students here were sophomores. I’d also never worked in a school before, so these past few years really have been a new adventure for me: a new career in a new country; and I am hugely grateful to have had the chance to follow this new path at such a terrific school with such great colleagues and of course this amazing group of students.

So, I’ve never been to a graduation ceremony, nor seen a graduation speech. My knowledge of the American high school rites of passage comes from movies I watched growing up as a teenager myself.  So, when Ms Kirk told me I’d be doing this I thought I’d better do some research. Now, I’m always keen to learn from our students, so when I sat down to prepare my speech the first thing I did is leave the room and go for a walk around the building. However, after a while I decided to try a novel approach and settled down to do my homework.

It turns out from my research that these events are a time to look back on our shared experience, and then offer some advice to you, our departing seniors. 

So first of all let me reflect on the past few years we’ve shared together.

Sometimes the first day of a new school can be daunting. In my case, on my first day in class, one particular student I was trying to help took one look at me, got up and walked out of the classroom. At that point I wondered what I’d got myself into, but my boss and mentor Ms Lynch advised me to be patient and gradually get to know the students. Since then it’s been a pleasure to get to know many of you as people, each with your own unique strengths and talents, and now to celebrate all of you today, including that one student, who I’m glad to say did eventually come back.

Again, being new to education, I just have to assume that closing the school due to a global pandemic isn’t a regular part of school life. I was teaching at East in March of 2020 when Mr Marble announced we would be taking a week out, which turned into several weeks, which turned into a transition to remote classes. Who knew that our attachment to screens would turn out to be training for a new type of classroom?

During the year of remote learning – your junior year – I had the pleasure of teaching many of you mathematics. I assume that you all have your formula booklets with you, as we agreed? Remote lessons were a challenge for all of us, teachers and students. I honestly had no idea that laptop cameras were so unreliable, or that WiFi could be so patchy in this part of the world. But most of all I was genuinely impressed at the good humor, empathy and camaraderie that you all brought to such a difficult situation. I think that in those classes we managed to form a strong sense of community, and I know the same was true in other classes too. We got to know each others’ pets – Bella, I hope Rosie the Ferret is doing well!. We got to hear each others’ musical talents – who could forget Luke’s recorder playing? In some cases the remote bonding between students became so strong that during tests it was as though a kind of telepathy had formed. 

As we gradually returned to something like normal this school year, it’s been great to get to know all of you in person all over again. I’m especially glad that we were able to honor these end of school traditions, like senior service day, the trips to Provincetown and Boston, prom and of course graduation. A lot of people put in a lot of work to make those events happen, but allow me to pick out one colleague in particular, just because we share an office so I got to see how hard she worked to make sure prom was such a success – Ms V thank you.

Of course, we also returned to the tradition of sitting exams, which perhaps you weren’t so thrilled about, but at least you got to experience the joy of those being over. And to those of you who sat your exams with me invigilating in the basement of the Baptist Church just down the road here, thank you again for your patience, and I hope you all had a great time.

Now comes the part where I’m supposed to offer some life advice. 

When thinking of what advice to offer young people, again I began by looking at what other people have said in this situation. Then I realized that to be authentic this really needs to just come from my own life and my own heart. And one thing that is very close to my heart is the subject of creativity. When I was a high school student, way back in the mists of English history, I discovered that I liked to draw. It gave me fulfillment as a means to express myself, and also sometimes a way to find peace and solace. 

One thing that has impressed me most about getting to know you all, as well as your humor, and your skill at the British accent (thank you Addy), is the amount of creative talent I’ve seen in so many of you. Whether it’s making art, writing, playing an instrument or performing in theater, it’s been a joy to see the enthusiasm that you bring to expressing yourselves. Just a few weeks ago, I brought my family along to Cotuit Arts Center to see the amazing artistic talent on display by Sturgis students. Just to pick out two examples among many: Julia’s incredible drawings, and Victoria’s beautiful violin playing.

When I look back on my own school years, I remember certain teachers who encouraged and inspired me, and I’m sure in years to come you will do the same. To continue my theme, I know that at Sturgis we are blessed with some incredibly talented teachers who are able to bring out their students’ creative talents in art, music, writing and theater. As an inclusion assistant I have the great benefit of being able to attend classes along with students and see this for myself. For example, Ms Carman, whose English class I joined for a semester, and Ms Botsford, whose theater class I joined before I was moved out - I think it was for my over-acting! Both of them have an uncanny ability to encourage students to find their own creative voice, including students who might not usually be so forthcoming in their other classes. 

And so my piece of advice is this: Keep following your talents and your passions wherever they lead you. Whether artistic, academic, sporting, or whatever brings you joy, keep doing the things that allow you to express yourself and give you your sense of purpose. These are the things that no-one asks you to do, but which you feel compelled to do. You don’t need to have a plan for success all worked out. You just need a willingness to keep trying, to trust yourself, and to follow your dreams.

Whatever paths you take in life, please keep the good humor, compassion, and love of life that I’ve seen in all of you in the time I’ve known you. Cherish your friendships, and keep helping others, because in the end all we have is each other.

Finally, on a personal note, I want to thank you all for the effect you’ve had on my life over these past three years. It has been an honor and a pleasure to get to know you. I will miss you, but I know I can look forward to hearing all your great stories in the years to come.

Class of ’22, live beautiful lives.

Thank you.

*Mr. Nutbrown was unable to attend the graduation ceremony.

Thinking back to my ninth grade year, I remember my first impression of Sturgis being that it was a bit intimidating, but allowed for a lot of growth and self improvement. I’ll admit, one thing that really stood out to me was a memory of seeing t-shirts that were made by one year’s senior class that had checkboxes on the back listing: 1. eat, 2. sleep, 3. do schoolwork. The front of the shirts said “choose two.” I remember nervously laughing about it with a couple of friends but there was a part of me that was concerned. I mean, most jokes like that are funny because there’s some element of truth behind them, but unlike my ninth grade self had anticipated, I got a lot more sleep doing online school than I could’ve ever imagined. Finding a balance between eating, sleeping, and doing homework is only slightly difficult… but most of the time my pressing need for all three motivates me to include all of them in my daily schedule.

When I was a junior entering the famed IB curriculum, I remember considering what I should pursue for my CAS project. I was discussing it with my friends, Charlotte and Hannah,  and we went through all of the books we had been reading lately and how they had brought value to our lives. We were looking into ways to serve our local and global community, and our service opportunities appeared to be somewhat limited due to COVID. However, after looking beyond what we thought was possible, we came across an organization called Books for Africa, which provides books and other educational resources for schools in Africa that wouldn’t otherwise have access to them. I know of so many students who were able to organize volunteer opportunities, beach clean-ups, protests, fundraisers, and even a campaign to spread positivity despite all of the obstacles in their way. I’m so proud of the people in our Sturgis West community for accomplishing what they thought might not have been possible, reaching beyond their perceived limits, and attaining their goals.

The concept of taking initiative in order to make an objective possible is so encouraged at Sturgis, and I personally believe that each one of us is given a seed of opportunity that can sprout if we are willing to put in the work and support one another along the way. There may be an occasional frost that causes the leaves of the plant to wilt, but through determination and perseverance we are able to make it through the difficult times and soak up any ray of sunlight we can capture. Growing for these past four years in an environment where people are trying to live up to a purpose and take risks has contributed monumentally to my personal development and education. 

I’ve never really thought of myself as shy, even though I’m not the most talkative person you’ll ever meet. I like having conversations with people and I’m not easily embarrassed. I think a lot of people perceive me as shy because instead of sharing my opinions whenever I’m given the chance to, I’m very thoughtful about what I say. As my friend Charlotte tells me, I’m analytical but I’m not shy. However, throughout my time at Sturgis, the encouragement that I’ve received from my friends has led me to pursue my true goals and portray the most authentic version of myself. I’ve started to feel more confident in what I believe and how I carry myself, and I’ve learned that being more honest and vulnerable has allowed me to create stronger friendships. I’ve met some of the most accepting, empathetic people here at Sturgis that I’ve ever known, and it’s this kind of community that has allowed me to feel comfortable in who I am. A huge aspect of this kind of support within the Sturgis community for me was found through my IB theatre class.

I didn’t start taking theatre until my junior year of high school, despite having always wanted to try it in my freshman and sophomore years at Sturgis. I always thought that I wouldn’t be brave enough to put my creative ideas out there. However, in my sophomore year of high school I was advised by my chemistry teacher at the time, Mr. Sevitts, to take a creative IB course. Especially since I knew I wanted to pursue difficult HL classes, I knew that having a creative outlet would provide me with some balance within my schedule. So, despite a bit of self-doubt and hesitation, I threw myself into taking theatre, however I was immediately accepted into my class without judgment. Although my prior knowledge about theatre was limited, and we were working on projects over Google Meet, everyone was so kind to me and truly considered my ideas despite my lack of experience. We were able to create some pretty incredible things in theatre, most recently our arts fest performance, directed by Jack Gamble (round of applause), It was a comedy in which I got to play a 1950s British businesswoman. The experience was unlike anything I ever imagined myself doing, beyond fun and incredibly memorable. If you witnessed that performance, you probably know what I mean. Not only did I hold a fake prop cigarette and get tangled up in a fire hose, but I got to spend time with some of my closest friends, laughing and doing something that we all love.

The support offered by Sturgis’ teachers, in my experience, has also been imperative to my own personal growth and confidence in my own abilities. Although I’ve found difficulty in some of my classes, I know I can count on any of my teachers to go the extra mile in order to help me accomplish my goals. Most recently, for my chemistry IA, I was able to investigate molecular interactions between hemoglobin and different medications used to treat sickle cell disease, using computer software that I had never used before. My chemistry teacher, Ms. Curran, created an entire lesson just to help me understand how the software worked and led me to databases I could use in order to understand the mechanism of the medication I was investigating. Additionally, my HL math teacher, Pags, was willing to stay after school to help me with math review for over two hours one day. The beloved Ms. Botsford fostered a classroom environment where her students feel comfortable sharing their emotions and taught me not only about theatre, but also about how to actively, mindfully listen to others. I could speak highly of any of my teachers, so truly, thank you all for being such catalysts to my educational and personal journey. You are the ones who provide us students with seeds of opportunity, and for that I will always be thankful.

Now that we’ve reached the end of our time here at Sturgis, that doesn’t mean that we have to say goodbye to our roots. We all have memories of our high school experience that will stick with us no matter what, whether it be senior games, theatre festivals, spirit weeks, clubs we’ve started, friendships we’ve established… As you look at the people around you, class of 2022, think of all that we’ve achieved together. We’re not done growing. Our future is bright, and I plan on soaking up as much of that sunlight as possible. Hold onto your memories of Sturgis, as they will allow you to keep becoming a more authentic version of yourself, someone who is capable of going after any and all of their goals. Congratulations to all of my classmates, I hope you all feel proud for getting to where you are today, and have confidence that you will continue to grow into risk-taking, global-minded, authentic individuals. 

To highlight these areas of originality and reflect back on what made our community so strong, I am going to rely on all of you! For the following activity, I’m going to need students and all of our supporters here today to participate because we recognize that you were just as instrumental in strengthening our community by supporting us and guiding us toward this moment.

Please raise your hand if you have played on a Sturgis sports team

Please raise your hand if you were involved in the arts at Sturgis (F Block Theater I’m looking at you!)

Please raise your hand if you have advocated for something, even if that was for an extension for an essay

Please raise your hand if you tried to help your child with an assignment, only to realize you took trigonometry way too long ago

Please raise your hand if you have ever had a meaningful conversation that had nothing to do with your classes, especially if it was through arguing with your teacher

Please raise your hand if you were a member of an advocacy club 

Please raise your hand if you ever shared a piece of artwork with your peers 

Please raise your hand if you stuck with Latin all four years 

Please raise your hand if you still don’t know what the following acronyms mean: EE, IA, IB, TOK, CAS, or IO

Please raise your hand if, for some reason, you took HL math

As a follow-up question, please raise your hand if you have ever heavily relied on the scale in a math class

Please raise your hand if you have brought forth your competitive side, whether that be in an arm wrestle with a teacher or even a teacher Beyblade battle

Please raise your hand if you have educated others on something you are passionate about, even if it ended in argument 

And lastly, please raise your hand if you have raised your hand for any of the previous questions

Seeing this sea of hands tells me that we have all been part of a very special community over these past four years. We have explored ourselves as individuals and given space for that uniqueness, while also bringing these varying experiences together to foster a space of respect, learning, laughs, and growth. 

As we move on from Sturgis, we are going to continue learning about who we are as individuals and will become a part of many new communities. I imagine this will lead to many new questions. We will have moments where we question who we are as individuals. We will feel unsure about what role we should play in these new groups. We will have times when we feel as though we are forced to give up some of our individuality for the larger community. And there will be other moments when we decide we must step away from the group to come back to ourselves. 

But through all of this future questioning and conflict, I hope we can find a moment to pause and think back to the sea of hands we witnessed here today. We, as a collective, stand as proof that people can work on becoming more fully-formed, better versions of themselves while also serving and contributing to the larger community. 

Of course, it’s worth acknowledging that becoming a more fully formed version of ourselves, and finding these new communities, is scary and can be difficult. Sometimes this difficulty comes from the fact that we feel the need to be perfect and fully informed versions of ourselves before we engage in larger conversations and causes. We often feel that showing our uniqueness and flaws and vulnerability represents an absence of courage, so we try to fortify ourselves with facades of perfection before opening ourselves up to new opportunities and communities. But what if arriving to these new groups as uniformed, vulnerable, individuals was the act of courage? 

I hope we remember that we, as individuals, are deserving and powerful. And when we channel 

our unique skills and passions into larger causes that spark our curiosity and compassion, we become that much stronger. So enter this new phase as a messy incomplete version of yourself, and feel confident giving that version to others.

Thank you.

Andrew has been described as kind, considerate, conscientious, polite, diligent and diplomatic. Mr. Nutbrown noted that he also has impressive guitar skills. 

Ms. Locascio described him as a gentle student, soft-spoken and insightful. She said, Andrew frequently takes a concept they are discussing in class and applies it to something that happened at work or over the weekend. He takes pride in both his school work and in his part-time work outside of school. He has an infectious, innocent smile that others respond to. 

Ms. Houston recalls Andrew as a 9th grader, 

she remembers him being very independent and confident, often helping others without asking. He was a true leader in our small class. 

Ms. Murphy, Andrew’s counselor, shared that “Andrew has a strong sense of family and community. He has participated in the Helping Honduras club that has raised funds for medical supplies for children in Latin American Countries. During the pandemic, Andrew assembled desks at the Forestdale School in Sandwich to

help create a new distancing learning environment for the Sandwich School system. He has also taken part in several food drives outside school. 

His ability and desire to be a self-learner and master technology in a way that is creative, specifically combining the challenges of learning multiple electronic music platforms and translating that learning into artistic expression, has been rewarding and self-empowering. His journey has gone from apprehensive about his future to excited about all the opportunities that lie in front of him. 

And, in closing, some words from Ms. Reese. She said, “Andrew embodies the passion that Sturgis stands for. He is a hard working, dedicated student in and out of the classroom. He demonstrates a positive attitude in all that he does. When someone thinks he can’t do something, he tries even harder! Andrew has traveled a bumpy road to get to where he is today, but those obstacles gave him strength and helped him appreciate the truly important things in his life. Andrew is self motivated, a hard worker, possesses realistic goals and aspirations, and wants to make a contribution to the betterment of society as a whole.” 

Andrew is a great representative of Sturgis and the perfect candidate for the Burke Scholarship! 

Please join me in congratulating this year’s Burke Scholarship recipient - Andrew Aguiar