It is with great pride that we congratulate the Class of 2026, who graduated from SJS on Wednesday, May 27. The afternoon saw the Gunn Gym filled with friends, family, SJS alumni and current students to celebrate the Grade 12s and officially announce them as graduates.
Words of Wisdom
Ms. Chee opened the event with a heartfelt speech to the Grade 12s, praising the class for their resilience, sense of humour and camaraderie. They demonstrated the capacity to build people up and maintain humour and positivity through adversity and Ms. Chee, even only having known them for nine months, has been immensely impressed.
Following Ms. Chee, Mr. Addley welcomed our extended members of the community including previous Head of School Mr. Stephen Hutchison and past teachers Mr. Peter Lee, Mme. Suzanne Duval, Ms. Andie Cheng and Mme. Marie de Maleissye. He thanked all those who have had an influence on making the year a success for our students, especially the teachers and parents. And of course, he thanked the graduating class and the 12 Lifers among them:
“Thank you for embracing every opportunity to learn, to lead, to serve and you have represented SJS with integrity, curiosity and heart.”
Board Co-Chair Grant Christoff then took the podium to speak on behalf of the Board of Governors. He acknowledged that this is not only a big milestone for our students, but for their families and loved ones as well. Considering the change ahead of them, Grant reminded the students, “Growth rarely happens within the bounds of what is familiar.”
The students were then called up one by one to receive their diploma from Mr. Addley, with Ms. Chee highlighting their proudest accomplishments and major milestones. The full description for each grad is available in the graduation booklet.
Embracing the Next Chapter
Once the students were officially recognized as graduates of SJS, fellow alum David Wu ‘07 took to the stage to recount the experience of transition into and out of SJS. With his own daughter Abigail in Grade 1, David had plenty of wisdom to share. “You are moving into a new chapter with a lot of freedom that may feel intimidating. Hardships become stories. Moments may be painful in the future, but they become memorable chapters in the book of your life.”
Kian Afshar of the graduating class then took to the stage to announce the Grad Gift—a tradition at SJS where the graduating class provides a gift of their choosing to the rest of the school. This year… a fridge for the Grad Lounge! This gift reflects the cohort perfectly: something practical, longlasting and genuinely useful.
This gift was followed by a performance of “From Now On,” from The Greatest Showman, a musical number performed by members of the graduating class. With Edward Li on the piano, Iona Jiang on the flute, Darren Duan on the violin and Chloe Chen, Ciara Cullimore, Cecie Kot, and Jazmyn Yong providing vocals, the performance lifted the message of hope and resilience to the rooftops.
The ceremony was closed by valedictorian Chloe Chen who, as a Lifer, reflected on how far away graduation once felt. She thanked the teachers, their families and everyone who had supported their journey and commended her classmates, especially for how they supported each other.
“Graduates when you leave here, remember your time at SJS and be proud of how far you’ve come […]Your work ethic and determination is so admirable and you mustn’t forget that change. The change that you inspired.”
Following the ceremony, the new SJS alumni and their family and friends were invited to a reception in the Atrium for a chance to celebrate, take photos and enjoy the milestone together.
See a collection of photos from the afternoon below.
