By Isabell Macrina
Hometown Weekly Staff
The end of May marked more than just a new month for the senior class of Westwood High School, it was the end of their high school years. Their graduation happened on the field right behind the school with a field and stands full of family, friends, and supporters.
After the national anthem performed by four of the seniors and opening remarks from Principal Amy Davenport, class president Ansh Sattiraju spoke to the classmates he had finished high school with. He opened with the question of when one climbs a mountain, is it for the world to see you or you to see the world? It should be to see the world. He shared his experience as a shy student who went through school with his twin, and how he delt with the feeling like he needed to erase his cultural background, shrinking himself down. Moving to Westwood in fourth grade allowed him to embrace his culture, like celebrating Diwali with forty high schoolers in kurtas and saris and bringing them to a local Indian restaurant that became a staple for them. He watched a similar change happen in his classmates, going from Junior prom where barely anyone danced to Senior prom where people danced for hours, and where empty stands at soccer games were filled with passionate fans cheering for their fellow students. The choice to engage with their classmates at every opportunity changed all of them, and Sattiraju hoped that everyone would take the skill of being present into their future.
Principal Davenport shared her own memories of the senior class, going all the way back to their freshman orientation. She named individual students, those who cheered with enthusiasm at a rhetorical question to the crowd, who spun their date on the dance floor, and those who did the extra museum trip with teachers on their Europe trip. Their power of “multiplication” influences everyone around them and that has made her proud to watch them grow as a class.
After members of the senior class gave a performance of “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac accompanied by Charles Goodman on guitar and Nyah Williamson on cello, Michael “Hank” Murray stepped in to give his speech as Class Honoree, which was a surprise to his family. He shared a story about a recent drive when, at a four-way stop and about to take his turn to drive, a woman came blasting through. His first reaction was thinking about her incompetence driver, but later he thought about how he was about to face adult life when his first reaction was anger or frustration when he didn’t know the situation. Likely? No but the benefit of the doubt made him smile. Humans default to thinking of themselves as the center of the universe, but everyone else contains the same multitudes we do and has an equally rich life. The importance of being present was highlighted in his speech as well, including another driving story where he was dancing in his car to Irish folk music when him and a man adjacent at a red light started dancing to that same music. He challenges his classmates to stop looking back on what they had already accomplished, and instead to look forward to what they are going to do.
With final words from superintendent Timothy Piwowar certifying the class, the Westwood High School class of 2026 walked the stage, received their diplomas, and threw their caps in the air. They officially graduated high school and were on to the next step of their lives with a whole community behind them standing proud.
