On November 22, students, faculty, staff, trustees, and other members of the Roxbury Latin community gathered for the school’s annual Thanksgiving Hall. This year, Marlyn McGrath delivered the holiday address. Ms. McGrath has been a member of the Roxbury Latin Board of Trustees since 2016 and spent 34 years serving as the Director of Admissions for Harvard College until her retirement in 2021. 

Dr. Schaffer opened the Hall by offering some historical context of the holiday—initiatives and affirmations from George Washington to Abraham Lincoln to Franklin D. Roosevelt. Dr. Schaffer wove snippets of history leading up to the Thanksgiving of today, and our collective thanksgiving for Roxbury Latin. “Thank you, with all of my heart, to all of you for gathering together in good spirit, forging this nurturing community, and for extending such a warm and complete welcome to me and others,” he stated. 

After a brief litany of thanks from boys in each grade, several readings and song, Dr. Schaffer introduced Ms. McGrath—sharing many of her impressive career achievements and contributions, and then touching on those essential characteristics that are not easily conveyed on paper. “Her kindness and warmth, her generosity and sincerity, keen insights and support are among the gifts she shares in abundance,” Dr. Schaffer stated. “On a day of gratitude, I will say I am deeply grateful for the love she has shown this school, and the support she has shown me over these many months.”

In her address, Ms. McGrath focused on the history of Roxbury Latin, and on her gratitude for all those who have come before to make the school what it is today. She highlighted the many trials, tribulations, successes,trailblazing decisions, and the courage of many individuals that led from Roxbury Latin in 1645 to Roxbury Latin in 2024. She underscored the distinctive mission of RL—the idea of the accomplished generalist, and the access to an RL education regardless of financial situation and how, for these reasons, the school stands apart from many of the other schools she has worked with in her time in higher education. “This school is not a building, it is a group of people. You are the school of today, we are the school of today, and that is worthy of our thanks.” 

Read the entirety of Marlyn McGrath’s Thanksgiving Hall address here.

“O Roxbury, Old Roxbury, ever dear since the days of long ago!”

The Founder’s Song rang out through Rousmaniere Hall on November 7, as the entire school joined together to celebrate the founding of Roxbury Latin, now in its 380th year. After several opening prayers in Hebrew, English, Greek, and Latin, led by selected Class I boys,, Dr. Schaffer welcomed the community, providing historical context on the founding of the school and introducing the topic of this year’s Founder’s Day: Boston’s “Big Dig” infrastructure project that took place in Boston from 1991 through 2007. 

“On Founder’s Day each year, we honor John Eliot, and we focus on his works and Roxbury Latin’s mission, and how the mission has withstood the test of time, and how we keep that mission alive today,” Dr. Schaffer stated. “This year, we learn about and explore this city in hopes that we may better understand the community around us, acknowledge our own undeserved privilege, and lay the groundwork and practice the habits that will inspire us to serve others throughout our lives.”

This year, Ian Coss delivered the Founder’s Day address.. Ian is an award-winning podcast producer and narrator. He hosted the Peabody Award-winning, nine-part GBH podcast series, The Big Dig, which was named one of the best podcasts of 2023 by various publications, including The New Yorker, and spent over six weeks in the top 100 shows on Apple podcasts.

“When I was growing up, I heard a lot about this thing called the Big Dig,” Ian began, “and most of what I heard about it was bad.” Ian continued, “I think most people in Boston today feel pretty good about it, so how do you reconcile those things?” Thus, his interest in the Big Dig began. 

Ian explained the origins of the Big Dig, a solution to the highly congested and impractical elevated I-93 Central Artery running through the heart of Boston, built in the 1950s. A proposed solution—of burying the highway, of the construction of bridges and tunnels—was scoffed at and ridiculed. “It is hard to overstate how radical this idea was,” Ian explained. However, the project eventually began, and finally culminated two decades later in what is still one of the most complex, expensive infrastructure projects in United States history. 

“I don’t want to say the project had no problems or flaws,” Ian said, “but the narrative around it—the cynicism and the negativity—made it very difficult to see that, along with all of the challenges and complexities, we were getting a transformative project that would change the city forever.”

After Hall, boys, faculty, and staff gathered for the annual all-school photo on the Senior Grass before changing into more comfortable clothes to prepare for a venture downtown. But before hopping on the commuter rail, the school headed to the Smith Theater for the traditional Founder’s Day Kahoot! challenge. Dr. Schaffer provided the boys with more historical context surrounding the Central Artery project, while Mr. Sokol and Mrs. Carroll spoke about the engineering and environmental aspects, respectively. Finally, Mr. Piper hosted this year’s Kahoot!, a moment when the boys could show off their trivia knowledge and competitive spirits. After two close rounds, Liam Coyle (VI) was crowned the victor, and it was time to head downtown. 

Via commuter rail, the school journeyed together to South Station and then trekked the Rose Kennedy Greenway (a result of the Big Dig!) to Quincy Market for lunch. Afterward, it was time to experience the Big Dig fruits of labor first-hand, through faculty-led walking tours and time spent exploring the city.  

View photos from the students’ Founder’s Day adventures, and from the evening’s alumni Founder’s Day Pub Night.

On September 26, students and faculty gathered in Smith Theater to hear from Jennifer De Leon, an award-winning author of young adult novels and nonfiction essay collections; a professor of creative writing; and the founder of Story Bridge, LLC, an organization that aims to bring together people from different experiences and backgrounds,  encouraging them to share their stories to uncover the similarities within their differences. 

Ms. De Leon was born and raised in the Boston area by Guatemalan parents. She has spent her education and professional career using writing and language as a vessel to understand and explore the importance of diversity and representation in literature and educational spaces.  “Studies have shown that when children don’t see themselves reflected in the books they are reading, they start to feel invisible,” Ms. De Leon stated. “They lose self-esteem, they might not raise their hands as much in class. They might not go for that dream internship, that dream college.”

In Hall, Ms. De Leon detailed her experiences navigating white spaces as a woman of color, noting that storytelling and writing have always been a steady lifeline in uncertain times. “There is one place where I have always felt like I don’t have to choose, like I can be my fully actualized self, and that is the page,” she explained with a smile. “Writing has always been a refuge for me. It has been a place where I don’t have to be anything but my truest self.”

This sentiment carried into Dr. Wilson’s creative writing class, which Ms. De Leon joined to lead a session on writing micro-essays, or short pieces of very descriptive writing. “Go a mile deep, not wide,” she encouraged. After reading a piece of her work as a lead-in to a writing session for the boys, faculty, and staff in the room, several volunteers bravely shared their writing samples in front of their peers and teachers.

Not only did Ms. De Leon positively affect the boys, prompting thoughtful questions from them during the Q&A, but it seems they affected her as well, as she applauded the level of engagement and interaction from the school community. “That is officially the most hands I’ve ever seen at an assembly,” she exclaimed when she asked if anyone had read the book The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. 

Everyone who sat in the Smith Theater that day has a story that deserves to be told. What started as a Hall between an author and students, ended as the meeting of a community of storytellers and writers.

Ms. De Leon has written two award-winning young adult novels, Borderless, featured on the TODAY show, and Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From. She is also the author and editor of two nonfiction titles: White Space: Essays on Culture, Race, & Writing, which won the Juniper Prize from the University of Massachusetts Press, and Wise Latinas: Writers on Higher Education, an International Latino Book Award-winning anthology. She is a professor of creative writing at Framingham State University and a faculty member for the Newport MFA Program. She has published prose in over a dozen literary journals including Ploughshares and Iowa Review, and she’s a contributor on NPR.

How long are you going to wait before you demand the best for yourself? The Epictetus quotation was displayed on the screen as boys filled the Smith Theater on September 24 for the year’s first Health and Wellness Hall. With everyone in their seats, Dr. Schaffer took to the stage to introduce Dr. Jonathan Jenkins ’02 who spoke to the boys about resilience and mental health, using the lens of his own experiences during and following his time at RL.

Jonathan is a clinical psychologist affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital. He works with people of various ages and athletes at all levels, including the New England Patriots and the Boston Red Sox. He is also an instructor in psychology at Harvard Medical School.

“The education you’re getting here will pay dividends elsewhere,” Jonathan stated, reflecting on his RL experience. Highlighting the rigorous academic program and the community, he reminisced about the life-long friendships and connections he fostered as a student. (In fact, fellow Class of 2002 alumnus Tim Pingree—longtime friend of Jonathan’s attended the talk, listening from the audience with the rest of the school.)

Jonathan touched on several key concepts, including making the most of each day, finding ways to center what inspires you, and continuing to nurture self-confidence and perseverance. “Find your why and believe in yourself,” he stated in front of a picture of the High-Performance Pyramid, which depicts one’s “why” or spiritual purpose at the apex.

His most important message, however, emphasized how critical support systems and relationships are, not only with others but with oneself. Speaking from first-hand experience, Jonathan noted, “The amount of human capital—the capacity to love, capacity to continue to be great human beings—in this room is immense.”

In closing, Jonathan led the school in an exercise that encouraged the community members to close their eyes, envision themselves achieving a goal, and recognize who was surrounding them and what actions helped them get there. The positive energy was palpable as students headed off to their first classes of the day surrounded by their friends, classmates, and teachers. 

“I am so happy that you are here… and that I am here. What a great place to be as we exit the summer and merge into the school year,” began RL’s new Head of School, Dr. Sam Schaffer on Monday, August 26, during the traditional Opening of Fall Term Hall, commencing Roxbury Latin’s 380th year. “We are poised on the edge of a great school year. I love this beginning, this moment, this newness. This is the best day of the year.”

Gathered together in Rousmaniere Hall, along with new and returning faculty and staff, were 309 boys, 61 of them new to the RL community—all ready to kick off the year together.

Prior to Dr. Schaffer’s opening and introductory remarks, Class I president Cole Oberg read the “Poem of Walt Whitman, An American” from Leaves of Grass, and the entire school joined together in song and prayer. “What a beautiful and thunderous sound,” Dr. Schaffer remarked, as he took his place at the lectern and the boys took their seats. He went on to recognize the boys in Class I and VI as they stood to applause from the school. Dr. Schaffer went on to recognize the sixteen members of the faculty who have taught for fifteen years or more at RL, with a particular highlight of English and Classics faculty member Mo Randall, who is entering his forty-ninth year at the school. Dr. Schaffer also offered gratitude for the work of various individuals over the summer, including the Buildings and Grounds team who, among other projects, installed a new school-wide cooling system. Efforts like these reflect a broader commitment to stewardship and care, where collaboration with trusted specialists such as Lee’s Air helps translate planning into lasting infrastructure. Such upgrades rarely take center stage, yet they shape the rhythm of each school day, reinforcing a sense of continuity, well being, and respect for the community entrusted to the institution’s care.

In Dr. Schaffer’s opening address, he spoke of the history of the handshake, a nod to the school-wide tradition that would be taking place immediately following the conclusion of the Hall. He reminisced on a lesson from his high school football coach who taught him that a good handshake is everything. He ruminated on the various famous handshakes throughout history, different types of handshakes and their meanings, and the earliest known instances of handshakes: “Handshakes play an important part in American history. And they play an important role in our school’s history too… It is essentially important. Because it is a connection—with our past, but also with each other.”

Just before the conclusion of Hall, with the school community “passing the peace” to those around them, Dr. Schaffer stated: “This is a talk, then, about making a connection. About being a part of a community. About physical and figurative handshakes. About our traditions and what they symbolize. About how we grasp each other’s hands, how we are a community, how we take on everything with that equality in mind. That’s what a democracy is. That’s what a band of brothers is. That’s what Roxbury Latin is.”

Students, faculty, and staff then gathered around the Senior Grass, relishing in the cooling air of late-August, to welcome new members to the community and wish one another a wonderful school year. 

Read Dr. Schaffer’s opening Hall talk in its entirety.

View a gallery of photos from Opening Day.

On April 18, Roxbury Latin celebrated in Hall the 11 members of Class I whose efforts and accomplishments have earned them membership in the Cum Laude Society. Each spring, the all-school Cum Laude ceremony honors the life of the mind—affirming that at the heart of a good school is scholarly engagement.

“This special event is intended principally to do two things,” began Headmaster Kerry Brennan. “The first is to recognize the most distinguished scholars of the First Class. In their efforts and in their accomplishments, they have put to good use the gifts they have been given… The second purpose of this annual ceremony is in many ways the more consequential, for it involves everyone else in this room. In honoring these 11 boys, we are honoring the life of the mind; we are honoring trying hard and doing well; we are affirming that at the heart of a good school is scholarly engagement. I admonish you to take to heart the example of the inductees… All of you boys have the capacity to strive, to grow, to change, and to know the satisfaction of ideas unearthed and potential realized.”

Delivering the morning’s Cum Laude address was Tom Batty, executive director of the International Boys’ Schools Coalition and former headmaster of Scotch College in Melbourne, Australia—home to 2,000 boys in grades Pre-K through Grade 12.

In his Cum Laude address, he spoke to the boys about balancing a rewarding and original interior life with the responsibilities and gifts we are all afforded by living in community. He wove those lessons through four powerful stories, peppered with great humor, beginning this way:

“We carry this stuff around in our heads that only we know about; our personal thoughts and internal conversations; our life in our mind. And we do this while trying to make some sense of all we observe and those we observe it with.

To add spice, there is paradox: We all crave our own personal freedom, but we are quite willing to restrict the freedom of others to get it.

We know that we have something unique to offer; we want our moment in the sun, but we are also conscious that the group can do things the individual can’t and that we can gain from this; that our quality of life is a product of the quality of lives of all around us, near and far.

But this brings restrictions to our freedom: the need for common codes, laws, and regulations. How do we find balance?

We sense when the balance is right: art that transcends culture to tell of our condition; song that inspires the soul; literature that moves us to tears; scientific advancements that reduce suffering; social advancement that leads to respect and dignity; mathematics that simultaneously thumps the heart and hurts the brain; rising to meet your mate’s cross to header the ball into the back of the net; or as I was on Saturday, hugging the stranger next to me at the Gtech when Brentford scored to get their first win in 10 games.

But we also know that when the balance is wrong it can be disastrous: anger; prejudice; greed; repression; persecution; bigotry.

Do the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the one or the few? Or are the needs of the many best served by protecting and advancing the needs of the one or the few? How do we find balance between all that is going on in our minds and all around us?”

Read the entirety of Mr. Batty’s remarks.

Between lively renditions of America the Beautiful and Jerusalem, For the Splendor of Creation and The Founder’s Song, Mr. Josh Cervas, president of RL’s Cum Laude chapter, provided a history of the organization before he awarded the twelve inductees their certificates: “By formally recollecting our origins each year, we also reaffirm our commitment to the Society’s original and abiding motto—three Greek words inspired by the three letters of the old Alpha Delta Tau name: Alpha stands for Areté (Excellence), Delta for Diké (Justice), and Tau for Timé (Honor). These three words, with deep roots in our past and far reaching implications for our future, raise qualities of mind and character which, ideally, each member of the Society will espouse as his own values and strive to instill in others throughout his life.”

Os seguintes seniores foram admitidos na Cum Laude Society este ano:

Leo Bene
Theo Coben
Aidan D’Alessandro
Akhilsai Damera
Dennis Jin
Ryan Lin
Jack Tompros
Lucas Vander Elst
Justin Yamaguchi
Evan Zhang
Eric Zhu

On April 5, the internationally acclaimed novelist and short story writer Anthony Doerr delivered an energetic, inspiring Hall to students and faculty—all as a delightful retirement surprise to Headmaster Kerry Brennan. As a young boy, Mr. Doerr was a student and advisee of Mr. Brennan’s at University School in Cleveland, Ohio, where Mr. Brennan was a new teacher in the 1980s.

In Hall, on the Smith Theater stage, Mr. Doerr delivered a resonant message about the possibilities, joys, and potential of being intellectually curious, of being inspired by many different things, of being an intentional generalist. He spoke about the inspirations behind his prize-winning novels All The Light We Cannot See and Cloud Cuckoo Land, as well as his short story “The Deep,” which students had read prior in their English classes. He answered students’ questions about his writing life and process, about curating a generalist mentality, and about the positives and negatives of artificial intelligence and its impact on the arts. Mr. Doerr also spoke about the positive impact Mr. Brennan made, and the good advice he offered, during a memorable moment at University School, when Mr. Brennan assured the young, eager Doerr that having too many good ideas was far better than having no good ideas. After Hall, Mr. Doerr joined senior English classes to continue the conversation.

Anthony Doerr’s bestselling book Cloud Cuckoo Land was a finalist for the National Book Award, and All the Light We Cannot See—winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the Carnegie Medal, the Alex Award, and a #1 New York Times bestseller—was adapted in 2023 into a dramatic miniseries available on Netflix. Mr. Doerr is also the author of the story collections Memory Wall and The Shell Collector, the novel About Grace, and the memoir Four Seasons in Rome. He has won five O. Henry Prizes, the National Magazine Award for fiction, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the Rome Prize, among many others.