MVRHS graduation emphasizes building community

Celebratory cheers and applause were heard all around the Tabernacle in Oak Bluffs as the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School (MVRHS) class of 2023 proceeded, with “Pomp and Circumstance” playing in the background. Sunday afternoon marked the final chapter in the students’ high school lives, the 64th commencement ceremony. 

The commencement program began with a welcome from class president and emcee Cali Giglio, and a speech in Portuguese by guest speaker Eduardo Marques. The students provided translations for one another’s speeches.

Several other student speakers also took to the stage to address their peers. 

Salutatorian Jacob Glasgow said he reached out to his classmates to ask for their favorite memories of high school, and nearly all of them revolved around memories made with friends. 

“The memories we cherish are with classmates, and bonding with them,” he said. “That human connection was, and is, the most important thing we will take away from … MVRHS.” 

Class essayist Daniel Serpa began by reading “The Road Not Taken,” a poem by Robert Frost. He encouraged his peers to realize the need to embrace all aspects of the choices they make. Particularly he asked the graduating class to know they have the “power to narrate our own stories,” and not to be consumed by their choices while striving for success. 

“Although we sometimes hear we should follow our own chosen paths, the more dominant rhetoric is that certain paths are more worthy than others,” he said. “But, luckily for all of us, we are the sole narrators of our own lives.”

Student body president Julia Sayre underscored the positive impact growing up on the Vineyard had on the graduating class. She also encouraged her peers to try new things and to learn from others since, as her neighbor put it, “the days go slow and the years go fast.” 

Guest speaker Jack Crawford, who never thought he would speak during graduation “in a million years,” asked his peers to cherish the people in their lives. 

Valedictorian Annabelle Brothers encouraged students to “rebel” against conventional opinion and be changemakers for a more just society, such as missing class to protest for causes like climate change and the housing crisis on the Island, initiating dialogue for change with programs like SWEAR (Stand With Everyone Against Rape), or rising to the occasion to help others, like when Venezuelan migrants were flown to Martha’s Vineyard under false promises of employment, and a slew of volunteers stepped forward to help. 

“The Island shores do not shelter us from the problems of an ever-changing world, so we as a community must rise to the challenge by creating new norms and defying … systems,” she said. 

Martha’s Vineyard Superintendent Richie Smith, who gave his first commencement address while in the position Sunday, shared with the students two “ingredients” for success: persistence and relationships. He encouraged students to be persistent in facing their goals. Smith said this was something each of them had within and could embrace, recalling his Japanese mother and American G.I. father, who persevered through difficulties stemming from their relationship. 

“Persistence comes from your inner strength, and all of us have this,” he said. “When challenges arise, persist, outlast the challenge, and outlast the others.” 

Smith then emphasized the importance of “love and support” through relationships from friends, families, and fellow students.

“It is your family’s love, and your friends’ love, and your reciprocity of their love that will lead to your success,” he said. “These are the folks that have lived with you to this point in life. They will remain your support as you face the challenges of adulthood.” 

MVRHS Principal Sara Dingledy also gave a tribute to the graduating seniors, saying a theme that defined this class was “being ready to meet the moment with action.” A key example, among others Dingledy brought up, was the migrant situation last September, when MVRHS students stepped up to act as volunteers and translators.

“During that moment in September, our students showed the world what they routinely show us on the Island, that they are wise, capable, helpful, and kind,” she said. “I hope the class of 2023 continues to use this education for good, and the graduating seniors have the confidence and courage to take action into the wider world.”

Dingledy also highlighted other ways this year’s graduating seniors showcased their talents and characters, such as dazzling the community with their art and theatrical performances, and winning the Island Cup back from Nantucket. 

Besides diplomas, several awards were also presented to students for their excellence in character. Brothers received the Outstanding Student Award from the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, Giglio and Maria Sanchez received the Principal’s Leadership Award, and Rachel Arruda and Alexia Campbell received the Vineyarder Award. 

The presentation of diplomas was accompanied by a near-endless stream of applause and cheers from family, friends, and peers, some wiping tears. After the last diploma was handed out, the students let out one last hurrah and flung their caps into the air, ready to begin the next phase of their lives.