CORNWALL – The sun set on both the eighth grade graduation ceremony and the Class of 2026’s time at Cornwall Consolidated School on Tuesday, June 16, with a lineup of speeches, awards and a celebratory pizza truck.
Wearing blue graduation gowns and caps adorned with gems, drawings and personal flair, the class of eight received both individual and group accolades from school leaders and community members.
CCS principal Leanne Maguire reflected on her three years with the class, saying she had watched the students grow from sixth graders into confident young adults. She said the school’s theme, “Out of this Word,” was about more than just academic success or awards – though many were distributed during the ceremony.
“A school’s culture doesn’t become ‘out of this world’ just because of data points or awards on the wall,” Maguire said. “It happens because of the people who set the gravity.”
Calling the graduates leaders and role models, she said, “You have been the gravitational pull of our school this year. You didn’t just hold a title. You built genuine, connected relationships and showed our younger students what kindness, inclusion and true leadership look like in action.”
The students’ Troutbeck Symposium project was highlighted by several speakers, who praised their work researching Naomi Kane Freeman.
“You unearthed history and brought profound recognition to our town,” Maguire said, referencing the section of Great Hollow Road that was given the honorary designation of Naomi Freeman Historic Road in recognition of the woman believed to be the first Black landowner in Cornwall. She purchased an acre of land in 1828, according to the Cornwall Historical Society. Student work also led to the placement of a headstone for Freeman at Calhoun Cemetery.
Student speakers were Halley Villa-Arip and Izabella Francesca Coppola, while Tom Brown, Class of 1970, was the guest speaker and delivered humorous and poignant remarks.
The graduates were Claire O. Barbosa, Willow B. Berry, Skylar Corinne Brown, Izabella Francesca Coppola, Vivienne Laurie DiRocca, Willa Elizabeth Lesch, Franco Aburto Nenen, and Halley Villa-Arpi.
Aly Morrissey
