GREENFIELD – Stoneleigh-Burnham School seniors reflected on their academic achievements and relationships during the 156th commencement ceremony Friday morning.

The 18 graduates of the Class of 2025 – six of which hail from Franklin County – were welcomed by loved ones and teachers inside the campus’ Emerson Building, where they were celebrated and sent off with words of wisdom from classmates and Stoneleigh-Burnham alumni.

“It is no small feat to be sitting here today,” Senior Class Co-President Leila Anthony said in her introduction.

Anthony recounted the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rigorous International Baccalaureate classwork, faculty transitions and exams, but said that the students persevered, and now share a unique bond with each other as young women heading into the world after high school.

“We did more than just survive – we thrived,” Chenziz Melissa Opiyo, the senior class address speaker, said. “As we step into this new chapter, remember the lessons learned, embrace the unexpected, try weird things, ask weird questions, party hard, love God and be queens.”

As a testament to the dedication of the graduates of the all-girls boarding school, awards and prizes were given based on academic achievement, personal growth, international understanding and leadership, with Zoë Naughton-O’Connor of Shelburne Falls earning two awards – The Academic Cup and The Virginia Giles Whitmore Prize –for achieving the highest academic standing in her class, and her leadership at the school.

Before the graduates received their diplomas, Stoneleigh-Burnham Class of 1969 alumni, former head of school and trustee Sally Mixsell delivered the main commencement address, speaking to the girls about the privilege they have to attend the school, the value of being a change-maker in their spheres of influence, recognizing the nuances of personal strengths and weaknesses — meaning the graduates will become themselves more every day of their lives.

“No matter who you are, you will have great strengths, and you have things to work on, and that’s why having a growth mindset throughout your life, will be very important,” Mixsell said to the audience. “Admit that you still have work to do, not just in pursuit of your eventual career, but in pursuit of becoming you — we are all becoming every day.”

Local graduates

Sina Adams and Mila Frantz of Greenfield, Cailtin Hamilton of Bernardston, Ashe Hafner of Amherst, Maeve Johnson and Sarah LaRocque of Northfield, Zoë Naughton-O’Connor of Shelburne Falls and Alexis Short of Brattleboro, Vermont.

Awards

The Academic Cup, Zoë Naughton-O’Connor; The Mabel Hood Emerson Award, Leila Anthony; The Prospect Hill Prize, Ijeoma Azuike; The Margaret and Edward Emerson Award, Doreen Jiang; The Virginia Giles Whitmore Prize, Zoë Naughton-O’Connor; The Miriam Emerson Peters Award, Erika Qin; The Head of School Award, Sina Adam; The Stoneleigh-Burnham Prize, Lexi Short; The Senior Class Prize, Chenziz Melissa Opiyo.

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.