FWCD’s 60th Commencement

Graduation for the FWCD Class of 2026 was spectacular. Salutatorian Eliza Peacock, Valedictorian Andrew Lobo, elected Class Speaker Ava Vanderpoel, and elected Faculty Speaker Stephen Dickey ’89 assured our graduates and their family, friends and admirers that they would be entertained, educated a bit, and appreciated. You can access more complete information on this year’s commencement, including the ceremony video, at fwcd.org/graduation.

Being involved in my 11th FWCD graduation, I am grateful that those momentous occasions do not in the least bit run together. Every FWCD class in my years here has managed to generate truly unique elements of their graduations, just as their years at the School have differed from those of their predecessors. In my 11 FWCD graduations, both the graduating seniors’ honored speakers (identified by their academic class standing) and their elected speakers have always brought a distinct tone and set of observations. It is worth looking at the 2026 graduation landing page, fwcd.org/graduation.

In my own observations from the podium on the night of Friday, May 15, I hoped to conjure some nostalgia from the great FWCD Class of 2026. This group of 86 young adults can tout a wondrous list of individual and group accomplishments. I also took advantage of my spot on the graduation agenda (last in line!) to make sure I was the final official FWCD representative to reference, while the ‘26ers were still in our charge, their school’s Core Values, especially how those values show up where we might least expect them. At FWCD, we are fortunate to have locked-in on those six values back in the 1990s, and our graduates are fortunate to have them as a running theme in their lives, as an aspiration that comes to mind quickly as FWCD alums.

As alums, the Class of 2026 will hopefully benefit from our having added a fourth “A” to our commitment this year. The Arts, Athletics and Academics remain the essence of a Fort Worth County Day experience. But as we celebrated our 5,000th member of the FWCD alumni community (Dylan Short ’26), we were finishing a year in which we were committing to our Alumni as that fourth “A” that needed our unending and ever-evolving attention and commitment. We are eager to follow the Class of 2026 into their lives as alumni and to maintain our connection with each and every one of them for years to come.