Twenty-nine students from the Class of 2019 were inducted into the MICDS Chapter of the Cum Laude Society on Friday, April 12.
The MICDS Chapter of the Cum Laude Society honors 12th grade students who have distinguished themselves academically during their 9th, 10th, 11th and first trimester of 12th grade years. To be eligible for membership, the students’ cumulative Grade Point Averages must be at least an A- (3.67) and place them in the top 20% of the class. In addition, they must demonstrate that they have pursued academic rigor by enrolling in at least three Advanced Placement® courses during their high school years, have no grade lower than a C and have never been on Disciplinary Warning, Disciplinary Probation or Honor Warning. Cum Laude membership is rescinded if these standards are not maintained through the end of the 12th grade year.
The St. Louis Country Day School chapter of the Cum Laude Society was formed in 1926, and the Mary Institute chapter originated in 1941. The mission of the Cum Laude Society is to “recognize academic achievement in secondary schools for the purpose of promoting excellence (Areté), justice (Diké) and honor (Timé).”
This year’s student speakers, Jack Cai ’19 and Katherine Kosup ’19, were selected by vote of their peers. As part of the induction process, all of the candidates are asked to write an essay, choosing from three topics. Both of the speeches at this year’s event focused on the experience of learning. In his speech titled “King of Infinite Space,” Cai shared about his realization that “I had to take ownership of my learning and find my own pace in the seemingly endless space of knowledge.” After diving into computer programming, he learned, “I have come to believe that just like the universe, knowledge is boundless. Physically, we are bounded by school work, by jobs or even by the room that we live in; but when I am learning, I find my mind enlightened and free to roam an infinite space.”
Kosup remembered learning an important lesson during a game of “chicken” with her brother when she was 10 years old. She said, “I don’t think that learning is defined by a school environment, nor do I think it is quantified in one’s ability to store knowledge. That is not to say that these are not important aspects of learning, but I have always found that the best type of learning happens when you least planned it.” She thought back to her experience during a recent discussion in her AP Government class, and realized, “In my experience, learning is not concrete, and learning is not linear. Rather, learning is fluid. It adapts and molds itself, revealing secrets to each person when that person least expects it.”
Congratulations to the Class of 2019 Inductees:
Caroline Abel
Hope Abel
Fatima Ali
Julia Amato
Caroline Arnold
Jack Cai
Kelci Creath
Jennifer Goldberg
Maddie Goldberg
Eleanor Goldman
Layth Hamed
Sam Hanser
Jonas Hart
Catherine Holt
Mimi Klahr
Katherine Kosup
Ana Larsen
Abigail Lee
Luke McCollough
Nicholas Mellanby
Srujay Pandiri
Jacob Peistrup
Rida Qazi
Katherine Rianhard
Jordan Rothrock
Sonya Sharqat
Kate Trowbridge
Andrew Zhao
Katherine Zheng