Senior Spring: The Moments We Missed

by Serena Lin ‘28

In my time at St. Mark’s, I have never questioned the repetitive daily life. I wake up at 7:47, I eat breakfast, and I go to class. Day after day, month after month. I watch the snow fall from the sky and melt into the frozen soil, I watch the freshmen struggle to find their classrooms just as I did, and I watch every small dripping moment in St. Mark’s. I have never questioned the end of this tranquility. But when seeing that this year’s seniors are leaving, I realized that things are forced to roll in a school like this. Every year, ¼ of the school leaves and ¼ joins as well. Though the snow, the blossoms, and the air are repetitive, the people are not. As the school year trends through Senior Spring and towards the end, seniors are prepared to leave St. Mark’s and join the next part of their lives. But still, high school seems to end too abruptly. Suddenly, the friends, the teachers, and the familiar environment were cut off from daily lives.

As graduation approaches, many seniors find themselves caught between routine and departure. The familiar rhythms of St. Mark’s continue as usual — classes, meetings, meals, chapel — yet everything suddenly feels temporary. In a conversation with Catherine Zhang, her reflection on her final weeks revealed a shared awareness of how quickly ordinary moments become memories.

When was the first moment you realized high school was actually ending?

I think it honestly hasn't kicked in yet, but it will next week and when the final evening chapel takes place.

What part of daily life at St. Mark’s will feel strangest to lose?

 I think the jargon that I use around this place, like "small", "PFAC", and "quad".

Did senior spring feel slower or faster than you expected?

People always say that senior spring goes fast, so I expected it to go faster. In reality, time has been flying since coming back from spring break. It was nothing like the dreadful winter. 

What moment from this year do you think you’ll remember years later?

Small moments like hanging out with friends on the patio, getting ready together, and preparing for Songfest. Big moments like groton nights, umoja, senior sunrise and prom.

What feels unfinished as graduation approaches?

There's always something that is left undone and there's beauty in incompleteness. For me, I think the fact that there is still a lot that can be done for community affairs and C&E work is something that will be ongoing, and never truly end.

Which ordinary part of St. Mark’s do you think you’ll miss most?

Having all my classes in the same building, saying "thank you" to Flik staffs, having the trusted adults to talk to, running from meeting to meeting.

What surprised you most about your final year here?

I am surprised at the bonding and connections I built here and I, sometimes, wish that I could have become friends with some people earlier. I am also surprised by the initiatives I was able to take and the support I received.

Perhaps that is what Senior Spring truly is: not a dramatic ending, but a slow realization. The same bells still ring across campus, the same paths are walked every day, and the same conversations fill the dining hall. Yet for seniors, each ordinary moment quietly becomes a last. One last walk across the quad. One last chapel. One last late-night conversation with friends. And maybe the hardest part of leaving St. Mark’s is realizing that the moments we miss most were never the grand ones, but the small routines we once thought would last forever. 

But St. Mark’s will always remain as a welcoming and warm place for all the seniors to come back. After 10 years, 20 years, or even 50 years the seniors who graduate in this month will come back as alumni, watching students stream through the campus, talking about nominal events that upset them.

The St. Mark’s Grant Program: Learning Beyond the Classroom

by Claire Cho ‘28 and Joy Kim ‘28

The St. Mark’s Grant Program supports student-driven projects and research through donor generosity, extending learning beyond traditional classrooms. Grant recipients explore areas of interest during the school year or over the summer, then share their experiences with the St. Mark’s community through meaningful presentations. Such a policy allows for unbridled expressions of creativity and talent, a testimony to St Mark’s enduring commitment to individual progress and accomplishments. Grants and fellowships in the 2025-2026 school year are as follows:

• Class of ‘68 V Form Fellowship

• A.A. Jones Family International Studies

• Matthews Fund

• Thomas H Kean ‘53 Fellowship

• Warren Scholars Fund

Grants for individuals generally range from $500 to $ 2,000, depending on project scale, and students submit their applications through written proposals. The student grants committee, chaired by the Director of the Burgess Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning, then reviews each application and chooses what projects to fund. 

Lily Oh 27’ shared her grant project, a music initiative focused on small ensemble performances, with us. Her interactions with a Korean War veteran provided the framework upon which she built an idea that, she stated, “challenged assumptions I had not fully questioned before”. Even after so many years, the veteran clearly recalled a traditional Korean refrain known as Arirang; this led her to realize the enduring power of familiar and emotional music. Specifically, she realized that such a power transcended the established limits of age, limit, and culture. Her grant project was all about honing this power to create small ensemble performances that connect audiences separated by social constructs. The accomplishments and independent thinking inherent in this music initiative speak for themselves. Lily’s project clearly showcases the creativity and talent the Matthews grant was made to support and marks an important milestone in her time here at St. Mark’s. 

Tell us about your project. 

“My project was a music initiative where we focused on creating structured, interactive music sessions at local senior centers or in memory care centers, using small ensemble performances to encourage engagement rather than passive listening. The goal is to use familiar and emotionally resonant music as a way to bring their positive memories back into their lives with conversation and connection.

I was motivated to start this project after performing with my school orchestra at a senior living community. At the end of the performance, a resident approached us and introduced himself as a Korean War veteran. As a Korean international student, I did not expect to find that kind of connection in such an unexpected place. What was more striking to me was that he remembered Arirang–a traditional Korean folk song–and began humming the precise melody, recalling how he heard Korean women sing the song during the war. 

That interaction challenged my assumption, which I had not fully questioned before.

I had viewed older adults as people I would have little in common with. I had assumed that differences in age, culture, and experience would limit meaningful interaction. However, in that moment, those differences felt irrelevant, and we were able to make a meaningful connection through music. 

This project is built around that experience. Rather than treating music as a one-time performance, I aim to design sessions that use familiar pieces (such as Amazing Grace or Somewhere Over the Rainbow) to bring back positive memories for elders.

I believe this music is valuable, as we get to use music as a way to interconnect different generations and also a way to bring back and reconnect with positive memories that have been forgotten in our lives.”

Do you have any advice for future applicants?

“Just start writing it down; even though you do not have a perfect plan, better ideas will come to you as you write. Also, you can modify your grant plans even after you receive the grant, so no big pressure! Also, talk about your project that you intend to do with as many adults, especially faculty members, as possible! I believe that one of the strongest resources we have in our school is our amazing faculty, and they always have some ideas or advice to offer to you. So talk about it, and you will gain some good insight. Finally, start during winter break, do not procrastinate.”

How do you plan to use the grant funding?

“I am planning to use my grant funding for transportation fees or for music or paper supplies for our sessions.”

The St Mark’s grant is a great opportunity for students to learn how to use independent thinking and passion to contribute to the well-being of their community and beyond. Core values emphasized by the grants include academic excellence, global citizenship, and public service.