Convocation Speaks to the Value of Mentors and Embracing the Journey in Pursuit of the Goal

In her welcome address, Head of School Emily Raudenbush Gum spoke to the importance of place. Our community begins each school year with Convocation in the historic First Congregational Church of Washington, and returns in the spring to celebrate all that the school year has meant at Baccalaureate. “Generations of Highlanders actually graduated in this building, until we outgrew it about 10 years ago. It’s a common thread in the Highlander journey that ties you to other alumni,” she said.

Mentoring the Potential in Teenagers RIght Now
In her remarks, Raudenbush Gum spoke about what it means for a boarding school to be an ecosystem, one that is composed of friends, roommates, classmates, and teammates as well as the adults who serve as teachers, coaches, advisors, and house parents, places such as favorite buildings and the turf, and technology.  Ecosystems may also include “keystone species” that have “a disproportionate impact on the ecosystem,” such as the wolves that were reintroduced in Yellowstone National Park in 1995. Raudenbush Gum hypothesized that the keystone species in boarding schools are mentors, and referenced a book the faculty read this summer, 10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People, in support of her theory. The book was written by David Yeager, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and a cofounder of the Texas Behavioral Science and Policy Institute.

“Your brain development has a tremendous amount to do with how you are feeling and with what is possible in the ages you are right now,” she told students. “Your bodies and your mind are extraordinarily malleable and you are as fit, or as potentially fit, as you will ever be in your life. This time in your life is extraordinary in terms of what you are capable of accomplishing. What that means is that we take very seriously pushing you out of your comfort zone, because we know that the only way for you to grow is for you to be pushed outside of your comfort zone. And this is where artificial intelligence, if you’re not careful, is really going to work against you, instead of working to your good. Because AI in this environment, in schools, can be a temptation not to do the hard work.”

Yeager wrote: “Although stressful experiences feel unpleasant in the moment, they are the path through which everyone who ever became really good at something got to where they are.” This is what he calls the “stress-is-enhancing mindset” vs. the “stress-is-debilitating mindset,” Raudenbush Gum explained.

“We all know that there is a difference between stress and anxiety. But the reality is no growth can happen without some stress, and you’re going to have some ups and downs; you’re going to have some stress in high school. That’s actually what it means to be a person. Your mentors, in those moments when they are really in tune with you, will prioritize you and what you need,” she said.

“The book caught my attention because it captures something profoundly true in my life and experience about this mentorship relationship,” Raudenbush Gum continued, recalling several of the impactful mentors in her life, from her field hockey coach at The Hill School, to her first boss at the University of Virginia, where she worked as a research assistant, to her advisor in graduate school at the University of Oxford. Each held her to impossibly high standards and offered the support necessary to reach her goals. In the same way, the adults at Gunn, in their capacity as teachers, coaches, advisors, and house parents, are here to be potential mentors and help students reach the impossibly high standards they set for themselves.

“A really good mentor is so in touch with you that they know when you need them. Sometimes what your mentor is there to do is to step back and believe that you are going to be able to handle the seat at the table,” she said. “The adults here on campus can get tuned in if you will let us, and we can help you walk to the highest potential that you can have this year. That is the invitation.”

Academic Honors and Top Scholars
During the service, Jason Koza, Dean of Academics, recognized students who were named to the Honor Roll, High Honor Roll, and Dean’s List for the 2024-2025 school year and the top scholars for each class. The top scholar in the Class of 2028 was Raven Bennett ’28, the top scholar in the Class of 2027 was Tamaki Nakane '27, and the top scholar in the Class of 2026 was Michael Copen ’26, who was also the top scholar in the school. The top scholar in the senior class for 2024-25 was Olivia Kurtz '25, who was also the second highest scholar in the school.

The 2024-25 Prefects and Head Prefect
Associate Head of School Seth Low P’26 ’28 introduced this year’s Head Prefect, Martha Ewing ’26, who delivered the Head Prefect Address. 

“At Gunn, we show up from each other, learn from our peers, and operate under the same set of values and guidelines. The overall success of each year is dependent on how well we operate as a team, and how much kindness and grace we show each other while doing so,” Ewing said, using the new Frederick Gunn School tartan as a metaphor: “Our school is strongest when each of us adds our own thread to the weave, creating a community that is vibrant, resilient, and greater than the sum of its parts.”

Ewing encouraged first-year students to take advantage of the school’s culture of risk-taking and innovation: “Try a new sport, push yourself in subjects you thought you were bad at, and please don’t be afraid to ask for help. The support you receive at a school like Gunn is unique and incredibly valuable. People really do have your best interest at heart, so when you are in the depths of stress and deadlines, reach out to your advisor, teachers, coaches, friends, and prefects. Trust me: we want to help.”

She encouraged the Class of 2026 to make the most of their time together this year. “We have an incredibly exciting nine months ahead of us — with a Canterbury Cup to win back!” she added, to great applause. “So let’s be true Highlanders and show up for each other at every opportunity, connect with those around us, and carry ourselves with kindness, enthusiasm, and an unrivaled school spirit.”

Honored Faculty
Following this, Raudenbush Gum introduced the holders of our endowed chairs and announced that Christopher Viscentin of the English Department faculty had been appointed the holder of The W. Hamilton Gibson Chair in the Humanities. This chair was established by an anonymous donor in honor of W. Hamilton Gibson, Class of 1902, the school’s third Headmaster. 

The service concluded with the Convocation Address, delivered by Gaggini. A beloved advisor and dedicated French teacher, she has taught students introductory-level through AP French classes at Gunn for five years. She and her husband, Lorenzo P’17 ’20, are the proud parents of two alumnae, Margot ‘17 and Juliette ’20.

Raised in a small town in the South of France, Gaggini attended college in Aix-en-Provence and Toulon and studied international business, but as Raudenbush Gum noted, felt a pull toward the United States even as a child. At 10, she declared that she wanted to move to the U.S. She made that wish a reality when she transferred as a junior to Old Dominion University in Virginia, a sister school to her university in France. There, she discovered a new interest in international relations and political science and went on to earn a master’s degree in those subjects from the University of Denver. After she and Lorenzo were married, they moved to New York, where he is a managing director for Bank of America, and where she worked at the United Nations and later at a French luxury goods company. 

With the birth of their daughter, Margot, the couple relocated to Connecticut and Gaggini began a new career in real estate. She was active in the community at Rumsey Hall School, which her children attended, serving as co-president of the Rumsey Circle for four years. When her daughters left for college, Gaggini began teaching French to adults and became a tutor in the Center for Academic Excellence at Gunn before joining the faculty in the 2021.

“Each year, one of the first things I like to tell my students is that the most important thing they can do in French class is try,” Gaggini said. “The more you try, the more you practice, the more you learn, and the more you grow. My class is not a place for judgement. Instead, I encourage teamwork, collaboration, and effort. Students will make mistakes in the classroom, but they learn and move on. And nothing makes me more proud as a teacher than seeing my students become more confident and learn over the course of the year.”

"Thinking about these moments reminds me of why I became a teacher in the first place,” she said, acknowledging that her journey to becoming a teacher was not as easy or direct as others. Yet it illustrates that the value lies not in how quickly you reach your goals, but in what you learn along the way.

Gaggini pointed to her grandmother, mother, and aunt as her most important role models, noting they taught her the value of family, modeled perseverance and hard work, and helped her to see what it means to be a good teacher. Her aunt, now 85, taught first grade for 40 years, and inspired and motivated her to teach. “I remember going to visit her classroom during the school day just to watch her teach. She loved her students and they loved her. To this day, she still has students that keep in touch with her and speak highly of her. I always admired the impact she has had on so many young people while being both strict and caring with them at such a vital point in their academic development.”

In many ways, Gaggini said, she has always been a teacher. Her first students were her daughters, whom she taught French so they could be bilingual, and passed down to them the lessons and knowledge she learned from the women in her life. She began tutoring adults in French in 2019 and still meets one of her first students every Thursday so he can continue to practice. When she joined the faculty at Gunn, she stepped out of her comfort zone, relying on the breadth of her experiences and the inspiration provided by those strong women in her family.

“I fee the best part of teaching is the relationships you get to develop with the students and the growth you witness,” she said. “The main thing I would like you all to take away today is that your journey may take you down many different routes, but the value doesn’t come from where you end up, rather from how you get there. Whether you don’t make the sports team you want, or the role in the play you have been rehearsing for, the growth and the work ethic you gain from each experience will take you where you should be. And if you don’t reach your goals right away, keep your values close, learn from those around you and those you love. Keep trying, even if it feels difficult, and you will end up somewhere even better than you could have expected.”

Photos by Phil Dutton '81 P'23