This morning, we gather with the members of the Class of 2026 and their families for the annual Senior Breakfast, marking the beginning of Graduation Weekend at Christian Brothers Academy.
Over the next three days, we will celebrate several cherished traditions. Tomorrow, we will come together for the Baccalaureate Mass to give thanks for God's blessings and ask His guidance for our graduates. On Sunday morning, the Class of 2026 will process into Alibrandi Stadium for the 126th Commencement of Christian Brothers Academy.
Yet commencement is about far more than a ceremony.
In a world that often measures success by rankings, titles, and accomplishments, graduation invites us to ask a deeper question: Who have these young people become?
For the past several years, the members of the Class of 2026 have been formed in classrooms, on stages, on athletic fields, through service projects, in prayer, and in countless everyday interactions that define life in a Lasallian school. They have learned mathematics, science, literature, and history. More importantly, they have learned how to lead, how to serve, how to persevere, how to care for one another, and how to recognize the presence of God in their lives.
Among this year's graduates are valedictorian Rowan Doyle and salutatorian Cara Macaluso, two remarkable young leaders whose achievements reflect the extraordinary talent, dedication, and character of the Class of 2026. On Sunday, they will address their classmates as they conclude one chapter and begin another. Their success is a testament not only to individual effort, but to the strength, unity, and spirit of the entire Class of 2026.
The statistics associated with this class are certainly impressive. Their academic achievements have opened doors to some of the most respected colleges and universities in the nation. Their accomplishments reflect years of hard work, sacrifice, and dedication.
But the true measure of a CBA education cannot be captured in a list of acceptances, awards, or accolades.
The true measure is found in the young man who learned to place the needs of others before his own. It is found in the young woman who discovered the confidence to lead. It is found in friendships that will endure for a lifetime, in acts of service performed quietly and without recognition, and in the conviction that faith must be lived through action.
This weekend, we also welcome back the members of the Golden Jubilee Class of 1976. Their presence serves as a powerful reminder that the value of a Lasallian education reveals itself not only at graduation, but across a lifetime. Fifty years after receiving their diplomas, they return as living witnesses to the enduring impact of the values they first encountered here at CBA.
As we prepare to confer diplomas upon the Class of 2026, we celebrate not merely where they are going, but who they have become.
My prayer for our graduates is that they leave CBA with the courage to seek truth, the wisdom to discern God's call in their lives, and the commitment to use their gifts in the service of others. If they do that, they will honor the Lasallian mission wherever life leads them.
Congratulations to the Class of 2026. We are proud of you, grateful for you, and excited to welcome you as the newest members of the worldwide community of Christian Brothers Academy graduates.
Live Jesus in our hearts...forever!
Mr. Matthew Keough
President, Christian Brothers Academy
