Notre Dame Academy Class of 2013 Graduates

Friday marked the beginning of a new chapter for the 141 Notre Dame Academy girls who graduated on a sunny afternoon at the school’s field.

The Notre Dame seniors walked across family and friends one last time as high school students and then moved their tassels from right to left and became graduates. 

In front of a crowd of family members, classmates, faculty and friends, student speaker Julia MacDougall of Weymouth compared her class to a ring of fire explaining that each of the students has the potential to light up the world.

“We, the Class of 2013, are the candles,” she said. “We bear the light. In our time together, it has been amazing to see how much all of us light up this world which we are about to enter, free. All of our light is different: some might illuminate the world best by telling jokes to brighten the day, some shine as they participate in campus ministry outreaches, and some are most radiant as they share with us their knowledge… I cannot wait to see how you go light your world.”

MacDougall said Notre Dame Academy did not just teach students the classroom curriculum but also how to be good citizens.

“NDA has taught us about being good people; about taking time out of our busy schedules to help those who need us,” she said.  “So, I trust, that even as we go into the world and find the cures for cancer and world hunger, we will always be a phone call away from a friend who needs a listening ear, or a stranger who needs a helping hand.”

Rear Admiral Margaret DeLuca Klein, the  first female commandant of the US Naval Academy was the commencement speaker.

Klein, a 1975 NDA graduate said going to school in Hingham helped shaped her life.  She then  asked students to use the gifts God has given, be passionate about life’s work, and help those less fortunate, be a lifelong learner,stay close to God, and most of all be balanced. 

“In the coming days, find a button,” she told the students. “Find one with four holes in it.  Use the four holes in the button to remind you to stay balanced.  If you separate all that you do in terms of personal, professional, civic and spiritual responsibilities, think about the button.  The holes in the button are pretty darn near equal.  That might be a good way to think about your lives.  You can and should achieve balance over time.”