By Matt Hutchinson ‘19
This spring a new tradition will be coming to Saint Ignatius. Borrowed from the idea of the “Last Lecture” done at Villanova University, this year the senior class will choose a faculty member to give a presentation as a send off before graduation.
This new event will be named after Saint Ignatius legend Dr. Michael F. Pennock ‘64 and will be held on May 5th. The seniors will start by nominating faculty members who have impacted them and made their high school experience memorable. Then, the nominees will be put onto a ballot for a final vote by the class of 2019. The faculty member with the most votes will then give the final talk to the students reflecting on their time here, where they will go next, and who they will become.
The lecture will include a class mass at St. Mary’s Chapel and be followed by a dinner. It will be exclusively for the senior class along with the faculty and staff. This event is the brainchild of Fr. Shelton, who will be working on the planning and implementation along with Mr. Tom Healey ‘77, Mr. Casey Yandek ‘95, Dillion Gallagher ‘19, and Danny Brennan ‘19.
This new experience for seniors will be a meaningful end to our careers as Saint Ignatius students. Many students get wrapped up with the thoughts of graduation in the months leading up to the end of school, so the last lecture will provide a time to stop and reflect on their careers here. It is one final opportunity for the class to come together with the faculty who have made the Ignatius experience so worthwhile and a chance for us to be together for one of the last times before we go our separate ways.
