GREENFIELD — As the 36 graduates of Four Rivers Charter Public School begin to navigate new waters, their fellow “crewmates” and teachers spoke to the Class of 2026 about the value of community building and friendship.
In an intimate ceremony on the Colrain Road campus on Saturday, Head of School and Principal Jenni Manfredi spoke about her experience watching the classmates grow up while she was first getting to know the school herself. She talked about the contributions of the class, from being leaders and role models for younger students to follow, to enriching the classroom and extracurricular activities.
Speaking to what comes next for these students, Manfredi asked the audience, “What do you hope these graduates carry with them from Four Rivers?” and spoke to the school’s Portrait of a Graduate framework that teaches the pupils to be curious learners, strong communicators and thoughtful problem-solvers — qualities that Manfredi said she sees in each of these graduates.
“As you leave Four Rivers, my hope is that you continue to build community wherever you go, ask meaningful questions and seek opportunities to learn, to serve and to lead,” she said, adding, “Wherever you go, wherever we go on next, remember we are crew, not passengers, and you will always be part of the Four Rivers crew.”
Following Manfredi’s remarks, some of the graduates got up to share stories from their time at Four Rivers, which included reflections on starting off seventh grade on Zoom during the pandemic and the growth they’ve seen in each other since.
Velouria Menegoni read the Mary Oliver poem “Wild Geese,” followed by Aida Potter, who spoke candidly about how the school community was “safe and small,” but how that can be “limiting” to students who may not get a full reflection of the outside world. Even so, she said the community has been a gift, but she’s challenging herself and the Class of 2026 after graduation.
“I’m challenging myself, and all of us, to bring the whole of ourselves to the next communities we build. Bring the best parts and the hard parts and the parts we haven’t fully explored yet, encountering different types of people and challenging ideas, and being brave enough to meet those challenges with an open mind and an open heart, is the next part of our journey,” she said.
Throughout the trials and tribulations of navigating high school, graduate Cooper Whitney said that in the end, he’s going to remember his time at the school as his “good old days,” to quote Andy Bernard from “The Office.”
“Getting to witness and experience people grow and change and find who they are is a long and messy process, but a mess creates a masterpiece, and I’m so grateful that I got to be a part of this one,” he said.
Before a performance of “Wish You Were Here” by Pink Floyd by friends Noah Rutherford and Josiah Koy, Oliver West and Kale Copeland spoke about the connections between graduates, and reminded them that while everyone will be leaving the school, “you’ll always be a part of the same story.”
Lastly, before accepting their diplomas, graduates were each honored with heartfelt, personalized messages from their teachers that highlighted the accomplishments, personalities and growth of each of the 36 graduates.
Graduates
* indicates students who have earned the Seal of Biliteracy
Isla Ballard, Logan Blais, Kolin Broderick, Anna Brown, Angelina Caruso, Alexander Chaisson, Kale Copeland, Christian Dimitriou, Una Garvin, Sylvia Guillaume, Russell Herbert, Emma Horton-Woods*, Vala Jenczyk, Gwendolyn Kemp, Rex Kim, Stella Langlands, Grace Mackenzie, Brennan Mahoney, Oscar McDonough, Velouria Menegoni, Trinity Moron, Aida Potter, Miles Retzlaff*, Iris Richards, Zachary Robertson, Andrew Rowan*, Kaleb Rudder, Noah Rutherford, Kai Sarmiento*, Abigail Somers, Eli Stewart, Sadie Waggenbeek, Vivian Wasileski, Nathan Wells, Oliver West and Cooper Whitney.
Scholarships
New Salem Town Scholarship — Anna Brown.
Massachusetts Bankers Scholarship — Emma Horton-Woods.
Conway Fireman’s Auxiliary Scholarship — Noah Rutherford.
Festival of the Hills Scholarship — Noah Rutherford.
Warwick Community Foundation Scholarship — Ren Waggenbeek.
