CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2020!
Saturday, June 6, 2020 was an historic occasion: the first-ever virtual Commencement ceremony. Through not together in person, we were together in spirit as we celebrated the Class of 2020 from our homes. Please visit our Meet the Class of 2020 page for more!
As a result of the pandemic and health and safety restrictions, cancellations of many beloved spring traditions were necessary. However, new ideas and new ways of imagining celebrations of milestones were generated. College Shirt Day—the day seniors wear gear from the colleges they have selected and join an all-day photo shoot—morphed into the Senior Car Parade. Parents and staff collaborated to organize this safe (physically distant) alternative. Westtown faculty and staff lined the parade route to congratulate and cheer on our seniors. Here's a peek at this joyful event! You can see more on our Meet the Class of 2020 page!
5TH AND 8TH GRADE GRADUATIONS
The car parade for the seniors was so successful that car parades to celebrate our 5th and 8th graders were scheduled as well! After the celebration parade, 5th grade families gathered in the Athletic Center parking lot where Lower School Principal Karyn Payton read the names of each student to cheers of attendant faculty and staff. Each student recorded their graduation speeches and a compilation video was shared with families. Enjoy the sights and sounds of this event in the 5th grade photo/video gallery!
The reading of a personal tribute to each 8th grade student is too special a tradition to forego, so this year, following the parade of cars, each family drove their student to Central, where Middle School faculty read each student's tribute and gifted them them a congratulatory sign with their photo. You can see more in the 8th grade photo/video gallery.
Congratulations to all!
COLLECTING HISTORY AS IT HAPPENS: ADDING YOUR STORY
The Esther Duke Archives at Westtown School is collecting personal stories documenting how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the lives of all those in the Westtown School community – students and their families, faculty, staff, and alums. Please add your voice now to history! This collection of stories will be a valuable resource to future students, historians, and scholars who will be interested in this extraordinary time.
Please share your story through writing, photographs, or audio or video recordings – either single accounts or compiled over time. Poetry or works of art are also ways to describe how your life has been reshaped by the pandemic, both practically and emotionally. Future historians will want to know how the pandemic impacted your daily life – your education, your professional work, and how your life has been affected by physical distance from Westtown, your community, extended family, and friends.
Families – particularly those with younger students – are encouraged to record their story as a family during the summer. Keep a family journal, create a photographic essay of one day, or record family members talking about what has changed during the pandemic.
Please visit this special page on the website for more information on how to participate in this project. If you have questions, please contact Mary Brooks, Archivist.