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News & Photos
Class of 2026, Your Journey Continues
From the appreciative applause as 167 seniors processed out of Tagart Memorial Chapel to the speeches of students and faculty and the presentation of diplomas, Commencement 2026 on a perfect Friday morning, June 5, was a joyful occasion — one whose speakers, coincidentally, kept returning to the same themes: journey and destination.
The day began with the Class of 2026 gathering in the chapel for the Baccalaureate ceremony, where retiring Upper School faculty member Rob Smoot '77 offered the opening remarks. After quoting J.R.R. Tolkien, Smoot spoke about celebrating the end of one journey and the beginning of the next. Speaking of McDonogh, he concluded, "It is a place that helped shape us. A place we can return to in memory, in gratitude, and sometimes in person, as our journeys continue.”
The Commencement ceremony itself started with the presentation of awards. Then, senior class president Reid Swirnow introduced senior speaker Harris Gordon with a note about how he was chosen: "The speaker is not based on grades, titles, or achievements; it's based on who we, seniors, believe best represents all of us."
Harris lived up to the introduction. Speaking with warmth and humor, he told his classmates, "Having to move on doesn't prevent us from getting to move forward and continue our journeys with what McDonogh has given us."
Then, with a nod to his own famously unhurried pace, he concluded, "As your walk continues into the next chapter and as the world around you moves even faster, I implore you to sometimes walk at a slow pace and take everything in."
Head of School Dave Farace '87 turned his remarks toward the destination — specifically, joy. Drawing on the work of Harvard professor Arthur Brooks, Farace described joy not as a feeling you stumble into or a destination you eventually reach, but as a direction — something you actively build. "Joy is made up of three essential ingredients: enjoyment, satisfaction, and meaning," Farace said, providing examples of each.
Farace and Board of Trustees President Mike Cummings then conferred diplomas on the Class of 2026, followed by the Dedication Hymn, sung by members of the Concert Choir alongside current student vocalists and alumni of McDonogh's vocal music program.
Director of Spiritual and Ceremonial Services Kevin Costa brought the ceremony to a close with a benediction that returned, one final time, to the theme of journey: "We will have many destinations in our lives: College, careers, the homes we'll make. Please grant us the wisdom to never hurry the journey. When we do, eventually, reach our destinations, help us to see the riches gained along the way. For the journey is the reward itself."
He concluded, "Grant us the grace to always know the destination is always precisely where we are. Go, and go slowly."
Watch a recording of the ceremony here and see the Class of 2026 awards and more here.
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From the appreciative applause as 167 seniors processed out of Tagart Memorial Chapel to the speeches of students and faculty and the presentation of diplomas, Commencement 2026 on a perfect Friday morning, June 5, was a joyful occasion — one whose speakers, coincidentally, kept returning to the same themes: journey and destination.
The day began with the Class of 2026 gathering in the chapel for the Baccalaureate ceremony, where retiring Upper School faculty member Rob Smoot '77 offered the opening remarks. After quoting J.R.R. Tolkien, Smoot spoke about celebrating the end of one journey and the beginning of the next. Speaking of McDonogh, he concluded, "It is a place that helped shape us. A place we can return to in memory, in gratitude, and sometimes in person, as our journeys continue.”
The Commencement ceremony itself started with the presentation of awards. Then, senior class president Reid Swirnow introduced senior speaker Harris Gordon with a note about how he was chosen: "The speaker is not based on grades, titles, or achievements; it's based on who we, seniors, believe best represents all of us."
Harris lived up to the introduction. Speaking with warmth and humor, he told his classmates, "Having to move on doesn't prevent us from getting to move forward and continue our journeys with what McDonogh has given us."
Then, with a nod to his own famously unhurried pace, he concluded, "As your walk continues into the next chapter and as the world around you moves even faster, I implore you to sometimes walk at a slow pace and take everything in."
Head of School Dave Farace '87 turned his remarks toward the destination — specifically, joy. Drawing on the work of Harvard professor Arthur Brooks, Farace described joy not as a feeling you stumble into or a destination you eventually reach, but as a direction — something you actively build. "Joy is made up of three essential ingredients: enjoyment, satisfaction, and meaning," Farace said, providing examples of each.
Farace and Board of Trustees President Mike Cummings then conferred diplomas on the Class of 2026, followed by the Dedication Hymn, sung by members of the Concert Choir alongside current student vocalists and alumni of McDonogh's vocal music program.
Director of Spiritual and Ceremonial Services Kevin Costa brought the ceremony to a close with a benediction that returned, one final time, to the theme of journey: "We will have many destinations in our lives: College, careers, the homes we'll make. Please grant us the wisdom to never hurry the journey. When we do, eventually, reach our destinations, help us to see the riches gained along the way. For the journey is the reward itself."
He concluded, "Grant us the grace to always know the destination is always precisely where we are. Go, and go slowly."
Watch a recording of the ceremony here and see the Class of 2026 awards and more here.