Torches Passed at 2013 Junior Ring and Passage of Leadership Ceremonies

On April 25th, the junior class celebrated their Junior Ring and Passage of Leadership Ceremonies. The ceremonies symbolize the junior class moving up to the ranks of the senior class and becoming the leaders of the school. It is an eagerly anticipated day for both classes. For the seniors, it is the beginning of their transition from high school to their roles as alumni and young people ready to tackle the challenges of adulthood in college and beyond. For the juniors, it is an opportunity to reflect on where they have been as a class, and how that has prepared them to accept the mantle of being leaders in the School.

 

The Junior Ring Ceremony was a long-standing tradition of the Kingswood School before the merger of the schools. It has continued as a significant transitional event of the girls’ junior year. Many traditions are still in place. Junior girls still wear white and senior girls wear pastels for the ceremony. The most important tradition involves a complex ritual of how the ring should be placed on the finger. This year, Junior Ring speakers included Anna Du, CK '14, and Upper School Dean Dr. Ara Brown.

 

The Passage of Leadership Ceremony has, at its core, the intention of celebrating transition. In addition to receiving a ring and a memento, each junior boy places his name, together with others in his class, in the Passage of Leadership Book. As articulated by Ernest Adams, the chair of the committee that established the ceremony and its protocols, “When signing this book, you take an official oath before your presenter and all those in attendance that you accept the leadership which is being passed to you for the upcoming year. Signing this book affirms to the faculty of Cranbrook Schools and to your parents that you realize and accept the meaning of that responsibility.” This year's address to the juniors was also given by Dr. Brown.