Groton Celebrates 127th Prize Day; Cyrus Vance Jr. Delivers Keynote Address

Cyrus R. Vance Jr. '73, New York County's district attorney and the keynote speaker at Groton School's 127th Prize Day, told graduates that the values they have learned at Groton will guide them through their lives beyond the Circle, just as they have guided him since his own Groton graduation 39 years ago.

On Sunday morning, Mr. Vance told the 94 graduates that while they leave Groton without a roadmap for life, they leave with a much more important tool—a compass. “Your education is crucial precisely because there is no roadmap,” he said.

Instead, Groton helps cultivate “the still small voice within…the voice of your core values,” Mr. Vance said. “That voice ultimately is what will guide you and protect you in your journey, but you have to listen to it…”

Groton’s Form of 2012, wearing signature boaters, began the day with a Chapel service, then paraded into a tent on the Circle. Besides Mr. Vance, speakers included Headmaster Richard B. Commons, Board of Trustees President James Higgins III, and a Sixth Form speaker, chosen by his peers, Jameson “Jamie” Billings. Jamie shared humorous anecdotes and described his class as more dedicated to the whole than to individuals’ successes. He also stressed the “intangibles” of the Groton experience. “A Groton education is so much more than classes,” he said.

During Prize Day, numerous students received awards recognizing excellence in a wide variety of arenas. The ceremony ended with graduates receiving their diplomas, many with academic distinction. Of 94 graduates, 30 graduated cum laude; 21 graduated magna cum laude; and five graduated summa cum laude.

Watch a video of Prize Day 2012.