103rd commencement celebrates the Class of 2009

Posted by: Debbie Bowley on Tue, 02 June 2009 19:08:58

The 120 members of the Class of 2009 graduated at 10 a.m. on May 31, led by valedictorian Mary Katherine LoPiccolo and salutatorian Heather Hawkes. With the graduates dressed in white caps and gowns, the ceremony took place in the Lauralton Hall gymnasium.

Both Mary Katherine and Heather addressed their classmates during the ceremony and both leave Lauralton with impressive resumes that show academic excellence, dedication to their school and communities, and service to others.

The McAuley Award, Lauralton’s highest honor, was presented to Julia Turner.

Following tradition, representatives of the Class of 1959 celebrating their 50th jubilee were recognized during the ceremony. Members of the graduating class presented a single pink rose to each jubilarian, symbolizing the new bond of friendship between the graduates and their fellow alumnae.

The commencement exercises began with a welcome by President Barbara Griffin, who later presented the diplomas and ended the ceremony with her closing remarks to the graduates.

The entire Lauralton Hall community proudly congratulates the Class of 2009. Click on the links to the right for more information on the Class of 2009 and the 103rd graduation ceremony. 

Valedictorian Mary Katherine LoPiccolo 
Mary Kate is the daughter of Susan and Frank LoPiccolo of Newtown. A Commended National Merit Scholar, an AP Scholar, a Latin Exam Medalist and the Yale Book Club Award winner, Mary Kate meets every challenge with great skill and energy. She is well rounded and values her responsibilities as a student, friend and family member. Challenged in a very demanding curriculum from day one, Mary Kate has faithfully achieved high honor roll status and is an outstanding member of the National Honor Society. Highly motivated, she always goes above and beyond requirements. Simply stated, Mary Kate loves to learn.   

Mary Kate can have a resume just for academic awards alone. Academia aside, she is friendly, positive, respectful and respected. She is involved as the President of Fine Arts and the Key Club (a service organization), is a valued Peer Tutor and volunteers at Danbury Hospital. Just about every club she belongs to, she leads. Mary Kate is passionate about art and it is said her work is always stellar because of her precision and craftsmanship. She is an artist and a musician who has studied piano for years. Here at Lauralton Hall Mary Kate will be fondly remembered for her cookies, cupcakes and baked goods where her artistry is perfected and definitely made delicious.

It seems that anything Mary Kate does, she does well - writing, drawing, tutoring her peers. She is precise, detail oriented, creative and caring. She will go on to change the world for the better in some way. Mary Kate plans to study biology on the pre-med track at Brown University in the fall. 

“Mary Katherine is simply the crème de la crème, not just academically, but in everything she has given to our school community as a leader, helper, friend and role model,” said Lauralton Principal Ann Pratson. “We are proud to have her leading this class.”
   
Salutatorian Heather Hawkes 
Heather is the daughter of Robert and Lisa Hawkes of Trumbull. Though Heather has received many accolades such as being chosen a National Merit Scholar and a Governor’s Scholar (one of only 35 in the State of Connecticut), she has an amazingly humble attitude. She truly leads by example; she is dedicated to all she does from her academics to community service to the violin. She simply adores learning, especially math, yet her passion is truly the violin. Heather cannot go more than a day without playing and her face lights up when talking about her summer at Illinois Wesleyan studying with violin masters from Russia and Bulgaria. 

Accelerated in math and Latin, Heather has taken Lauralton’s most demanding curriculum in every subject and finished up with a Calculus BC course online. Blessed with a wonderful intellect and passion for math, she is the consummate mathematician that shines through even in her English classes where her logical thought processes make their mark. Mathematics, music -  Heather loves them both and plans to further her study of music on the college level in conjunction with engineering at Harvard University.

“Heather is a real scholar and enthusiastic about learning,” Miss Pratson said. “She’s self confident and intellectually curious - a mature student who has her priorities in order and works hard to achieve her goals.”
 
Catherine McAuley Award recipient Julia Turner 
The McAuley Award, Lauralton’s highest honor, is named after the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy and given to a student for her dedication and commitment to Lauralton’s mission. 

The daughter of Barbara Turner of Fairfield and James Turner of Amherst, NY, Julia will attend Providence College in the fall.

While at Lauralton, she participated in the Humanities Club, the Spanish Club, the musical, the Ballroom Dance Club, was a peer tutor, and traveled to Spain in a foreign exchange program. Julia was also inducted into the National and Spanish honor societies.

Achieving honors or high honors throughout her years at Lauralton, her academic awards have included Excellent Achievement in Spanish, the Citizenship Award, the Regis College Book Award, and the Sister Mary O’Neil Mercy Character Award.

Described as “a leader who rises to the challenges she sets,” Julia is “serious about learning and willing to take on any project or task,” Ann Pratson said. “Many of our younger students have looked to her as the ideal of what they could achieve. She represents the very best of our student body.”