Class of '25 Celebrates Past, Present, and Future During Senior Day

With Commencement nearly a week away, the Class of 2025 indulged in a mix of tradition and (school-sanctioned) truancy on May 16, when seniors and postgraduates took part in the annual Senior Day festivities.

A hallmark of the senior class experience, Senior Day began with a morning tree-planting ceremony, a tradition that extends back to the earliest days of the school. The first senior tree was planted in 1886 at the Northfield campus and in 1889 at Mount Hermon.

Every year since those inaugural plantings, seniors at NMH have added their own foliage to the school landscape, leaving a lasting imprint on campus they can revisit throughout their lives after graduation, said Head of School Brian Hargrove.

“Think about the trees that, over the last four years, you found some shade under,” Hargrove said to the assembled seniors and postgraduates. “We are here as a school nearing our 150-year anniversary because people have committed themselves to plant these trees for all of you.”

He charged the Class of ’25 with carrying on that legacy and answering NMH’s call to lead and serve the world with intentionality, purpose, and humanity.

“Think about who's going to follow and how you can make the world a little bit better for them,” Hargrove said. “We do that in small ways and we do that in grand ways, but friends, it is important that we always do it.”

Hargrove’s words were just some of the heartfelt sentiments expressed during the tree-planting ceremony, as seniors and staff reflected on their place in the pantheon of NMH alumni and their journey together through the past four years.

Class of 2025 Spade Orator Yujin Kim ’25 reflected on the past year and participated in the ceremonial passing of the senior spade — a tradition as old as the tree-planting ceremony itself — to her successor, Sanjar Aliev ’26.

“Today is our day to plant a tree, one that will stay rooted here at NMH even as we go off in our different directions,” Kim said. “This tree will grow with the memories of our class, rooted in the work of the last year, the long nights, and the friendships we developed. Long after our exams are graded and our names are called at graduation, this tree will keep growing, and the roots we’ve laid down in community, in challenges, and in friendship will continue to support those who come after us.

“I now pass this spade and this tradition to you, the juniors, with the hope that you keep building, rooting, and reaching higher,” Kim continued. “May this tree remind us all: Growth takes time, it takes care, and it takes each other.”

Senior class “parents” Loubna Boumghait, interim associate dean of students, and Joe Latimer, director of college counseling, each offered reflections on their experiences with the Class of 2025, while Jennifer Keator spoke to the postgraduates who came to NMH over the past year.

“What an incredible journey it’s been watching you grow into the wonderful individuals you are today,” Boumghait said. “You’ve worked hard, overcome challenges, uplifted each other, and now here you are about to head into a whole new chapter in your lives. I can’t wait to announce your names at commencement next week.”

Latimer, who began working at NMH in 2021, reflected on the parallel journey he shared with many of the senior class students.

“Like you, I arrived not knowing what to expect,” he said. “We would go from the second floor of the chapel, to the back, the middle, and finally to the front every Monday morning. Soon, we will be relinquishing that space. May we always lead with humanity and purpose, something we all were taught when we arrived day one. Let’s continue to make Mr. D.L. Moody proud.”

Keator reminded the postgraduates of the importance of asking for help and relying on the community-building and collaboration skills they learned at NMH.

“Contrary to standard opinion, asking for help is not a sign of weakness or a lack of independence,” Keator said. “It takes a strong person to be self-aware of their own limitations and admit them. It takes a strong person to solicit the support of others and then actually accept that help. I’m certain that when you leave this place, many of you will enter academic communities and teams where, over time, you will have the opportunity to assume leadership roles. If you do, remember to ask for help.”

Lydia Perry Weis ’80, associate director of the NMH Fund, then stepped to the podium to explain the significance of the alumni pins, which are given to each graduating student by fellow alumni as a welcome to their ranks.

Several staff members who are also NMH alumni were on hand to distribute the pins to Class of ’25 members, including John Batty ’88, Tabatha Collins ’92, Metta Dael ’93, Themba Flowers ’90, Emmet Flynn ’17, Raheem Jackson ’13, Michael LaChance ’76, Tyler Murray ’03, Sarah Rourke ’94, Kevin Santos ’14, and Peter Weis ’78.

“The moment you receive your diplomas, you are officially becoming part of one of the largest independent school alumni networks, with nearly 30,000 alumni all over the world,” Perry Weis said. “As this chapter of your lives comes to a close, I hope your connection with NMH and with each other will remain strong for years to come.”

Archivist Peter Weis then read the NMH Tree-Planting Poem, written by alumna Josephine Alexander in honor of the inaugural tree planting at Northfield Seminary in 1886. Following his recitation, students took turns shoveling a scoop of dirt around the roots of the sugar maple chosen to represent their class.

For Kelvin Cheung ’25, the day carried a mixture of happiness and sadness, he said. Reflecting on his time at NMH, Cheung said he would miss the simple moments most. “I think my best experiences were probably just hanging out with friends, building a snowman in winter — the little things.”

The tree-planting ceremony concluded with an a cappella version of the "Northfield Benediction," sung by the assembled students and staff. The ceremony over, seniors were free to enjoy an afternoon of yard games and activities across campus, including desserts from the Clyde’s Cupcakes food truck and a homemade slip-and-slide.

As most of his classmates strode off to collect their graduation gowns and enjoy a day off from classes, Henry Castillo ’25 hung back to smooth the last of the loose dirt around the roots of his class’s tree and place the Class of 2025 stone marker at the base of its trunk. He recalled the first time he heard the "Northfield Benediction" during Vespers and the impact it had on him then.

“I was just kind of in a down mood [that day], before hearing those words,” Castillo said as he stood before the living emblem of his time at NMH. Overhead, birds trilled to one another and the wind rustled through the branches of larger trees, each planted long ago by another senior class on the verge of their next great adventure.

“Those were the moments where they lifted me up and made me realize what this place could offer,” he said.

Photos by Mathew Cavanaugh Photography and Max Hunt. See more photos from The Class of 2025 Senior Day on Flickr.