At Staples Graduation, Focus is on Growth, Not Elitism

By James Lomuscio

The 131st Westport Staples High School graduation today had all the elements of commencements past.

Staples band leader Nick Mariconda was the faculty marshal today as the faculty member with the most continuous seniority. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

There was the seemingly endless playing of “Pomp and Circumstance” as this year’s 466 students processed into the field house.

Cheers from more than 4,000 parents, grandparents, extended family and friends rang out. Ethereal, angelic sounds resonated from the Staples Choralaires and the Orphenians.

And perched high above the masses were the American flag and the immortal quote from Eleanor Roosevelt: “The future belongs to those who believe in the power of dreams.”

What was different this year, missing from the program and the Staples newspaper Inklings’ graduation issue, was the list of where graduates were heading in the fall.

In the past, the lists of top-tier schools and assorted Ivys have been brag sheets for educators and real estate agents alike.

The Inklings editorial explained today’s “deviation from tradition.”

Dylan Marone, captain of the Staples wrestling team, will attend Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont. He was mentored by RTM member Lou Mall since the third grade. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

“The senior list invited unnecessary comparison between peers at graduation, a day that should be a celebration of everyone’s accomplishments throughout high school,” the editorial said.

“In previous years, students and parents gossiped about how surprising it was that so-and-so was accepted into an Ivy League school while so-and-so was not,” it added.

Decrying competition and elitism “deeply embedded in the culture of Westport,” the Inklings editors said they hoped their decision “would contribute to a positive shift in the school culture itself.’

Even Valedictorian Jackson Ryan Delgado’s acceptance to Harvard was not touted when Staples Principal James D’Amico introduced him, though D’Amico did say he had the highest grade-point average for four years.

However, Inklings did deem newsworthy an article that Delgado and Nick Attkiss, salutatorian at Thursday night’s baccalaureate ceremony, were heading to Harvard.

Delgado, who earned the school’s prestigious Faculty Key Award, also did not spout where he will attend in the fall.

Instead he waxed passionately about the interaction among students and faculty all leading toward the end result of “pursuing our own, internal motivation no matter where it takes you.”

He urged students “to live life with intention … not let life pass you by.”

“Whatever we do, we must take it wholeheartedly,” he said.

Class Speaker Josiah Tarrant, too, did not tip his hand as to where he is heading next year. He described his love of cooking, having excelled in culinary classes and even volunteered at the Gillespie Center, the town’s soup kitchen.

At Staples, he said, “Students can be found pouring themselves into their passions that make them get up in the morning.”

“The world is full of challenges waiting to be solved by our generation.” Tarrant said. “Let’s be bold.”

As the students processed into the field house, Lisa Dodge craned her neck to catch a glimpse of her daughter Aliza Julianne Dodge.

“She’s my youngest, the last of four,” the proud mother said. “She follows a doctor, a lawyer and an accountant.”

She added that Aliza is heading to the University of Miami in the fall.

Lou Mall, who serves on the Representative Town Meeting, was eager to watch Dylan Franklin Marone walk to get his diploma.

“He’s been my mentee for 10 years, since he was in the third grade,” Mall said. “I told him, ‘You’re going to see a grown man cry.’

He said Dylan plans to study criminal justice at Norwich University in Northfield, Vermont In the fall.

“I will say this; he’s grown up to be a wonderful young man,” Mall said.

Perhaps Schools Superintendent Colleen Palmer succinctly summed up the graduates’ theme when she administered the certification of the class before diplomas being awarded.

“You’re passionate about your beliefs, and you’re compassionate about others,” she said. “We are better off that you have been our students.”