Friends Academy Graduates 29 Eighth Grade Students
June 8, 2023
Friends Academy celebrated the graduation of 29 eighth grade students Wednesday morning at its Class Day ceremony. Students in the Class of 2023, hailing from 15 towns and cities, will attend 13 different independent, public, and parochial high schools across three states this fall.
Using the metaphor of a swinging pendulum, Head of School Benjamin Kennedy drew attention to the importance of quiet leadership, patience, persistence, and working together with others. “In life, it’s easy for our attention to be drawn to the big gesture, or the loud moment of triumph, and to miss how those things came to be,” he said. “We can’t wait to hear about the various pendulums you encounter in high school and beyond, and we can’t wait to see the color that you bring to our world.”
The Friends Academy Class of 2023 and their secondary schools are:
- Maia Adam of South Dartmouth will attend Dartmouth High School
- Elmire Arsenault of Fairhaven will attend St. Andrew’s School in Barrington, R.I.
- Benjamin Bradley of Lakeville will attend Apponequet High School
- Phillip Bromage of Westport will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Lily Brown of Rehoboth will attend The Wheeler School in Providence, R.I.
- Dylan Chagnon of Lakeville will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Taegan Costa of Fairhaven will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Emma Farland of New Bedford will attend Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School
- Margaret Fearons of Mattapoisett will attend Tabor Academy
- Emmett Frary of North Dartmouth will attend Moses Brown School
- Teresa Hamilton of North Attleboro will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Matthew Howayeck of Fall River will attend St. Andrew’s School in Barrington, R.I.
- Finn Johnson of New Bedford will attend Dartmouth High School
- Seamus Keller of Westport will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Loie King of Portsmouth, R.I. will attend Riverview School in East Sandwich
- Carys Levy of South Dartmouth will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Claire Marshall of Fairhaven will attend Tabor Academy
- Ian McCarthy of Lakeville will attend Providence Country Day School
- Dylan Michels of Plymouth will attend Tabor Academy
- Charles Niemiec of North Dartmouth will attend Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School
- Jack Nylin of Dartmouth will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Subhav Parajuli of Marion will attend Moses Brown School
- Callie Peters of Dartmouth will attend Tabor Academy
- Andrew Pickering of Westport will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Magnolia Pin of South Dartmouth will attend Portsmouth Abbey School in Portsmouth, R.I.
- Mary Van Pelt of Newport, R.I. will attend Millbrook School in Millbrook, N.Y.
- Oliver Walker of Fairhaven will attend Providence Country Day School
- Dalton Whittier of Somerset will attend Bishop Stang High School
- Sara Wsol of Middleborough will attend Middleborough High School
At the start of the Class Day ceremony, each member of the Class of 2023 took a turn ringing the Morgan Street Bell, the historic school bell from when Friends Academy was located in New Bedford. Over 150 years ago, it was the bell that called students to school each day. Today, the bell is used to open and close each school year, marking graduates' transition from students to alumni.
Founded in 1810, Friends Academy is a co-educational independent day school in North Dartmouth, Mass. serving students in Early Childhood through Grade 8. Friends provides each student with a foundation built upon academics, community, respect, responsible citizenship, and a sense of well-being for a lifetime of learning and personal growth. In addition to its traditional program, Friends Academy offers the Sally Borden Program for students with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences.