New year, same tried and true brotherhood.
As the sun began to dip down behind St. Joseph’s Chapel on Sunday evening, Head of School Dr. Sean Jenkins gave the boys a brief history of Christ School.
Co-founders Thomas and Susan Wetmore are surely looking down proudly at a school that has grown and prospered to have 302 students from 15 different states and eight counties. Of that record enrollment number, 198 of the boys are boarding students, which is also an all-time high. An extensive renovation of the Patrick Beaver Student Center was completed earlier this summer.
Christ School’s 124th academic year officially began Sunday with Convocation in Yard A.
“You are now a part of the Long Green Line,” Dr. Jenkins said in his speech.
“Among the traits that connect you are your bravery and your courage, prerequisites for leaving home to board or for leaving behind your old school for an all-boys school. What sets you apart is your distinctive personality, the unique character of your mind, the particulars of your background. All of us at Christ School have been waiting with great excitement for your arrival. Here you will find a warm and welcoming community.”
Sunday’s setting for Convocation was the site of the original school grounds. Most years, Yard A has only been used for graduation. But with social distancing at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the new tradition of an outdoor Convocation began, and it has stuck.
Kaden Brown ’24 of Lutz, Fla., is Christ School’s Head Prefect for 2023-24, which means he received the symbolic rowing paddle signed by the senior class on Sunday. It is a token that represents their commitment to lead by example in the coming school year.
The presentation is made at each Convocation by Assistant Head of School Ron Ramsey.
Sacristan Noah Henthorn ’24, who is from Winston-Salem, N.C., rang the Angelus bell to start Sunday’s ceremony.