Baldwin Celebrates Its 136th Graduating Class

On June 6, 65 seniors graduated from The Baldwin School as the 136th graduating class. These seniors earned 368 acceptances to 176 unique colleges and universities. More than 95% were admitted to their top choice schools.

 

The student class speaker for the 2024 commencement ceremony was Lauren Halak. Miss Halak, who was elected by her peers, delivered her speech at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church in front of classmates, Baldwin Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, family and friends. She stated, “As we move past Baldwin, that valued sense of belonging will stick with us. The memories and relationships that this class has formed will last beyond the year 2024, and serve to benefit our future endeavors. So, with that, to the Class of 2024: the love I have for you is infinite, and so is the love I have seen each and every one of you express to each other. Our graduation year may soon become part of the past, but I assure you our love for each other and for our experiences together is timeless.”

 

This year's commencement keynote speaker was alumna Dr. Farah Jasmine Griffin. She graduated from Baldwin in 1981. Dr. Griffin is the William B. Ransford Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University where she also served as the inaugural Chair of the African American and African Diaspora Studies Department. She is a 2021 Guggenheim Fellow and an Andrew Mellon Foundation Scholar in Residence. She received her BA from Harvard, where she majored in American History and Literature and her PhD in American Studies from Yale. Her major fields of interest are American and African American literature, music and history, and she has published widely on issues of race and gender, feminism and cultural politics. Dr. Griffin’s essays and articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, Harper's Bazaar, Art Forum and numerous other publications. She is a frequent radio commentator on political and cultural issues. Her activism has centered on issues of education, poverty and gender equity especially as they impact women and children. She currently sits on the board of The Brotherhood Sister Sol, an organization that provides comprehensive, holistic and long-term support services to youth in Central Harlem. In celebration of her incredible work, Dr. Griffin was recognized with Baldwin’s Alumnae Award for Life Achievement in May 2021.

 

Dr. Griffin concluded her remarks, saying to the Class of 2024, “You have the intellectual preparation, foundation and capacity, the ability to think independently, to engage in civil, constructive debate and dialogue, to reinvigorate our democracy. You have forged lifelong relationships that will both test and sustain you. You have learned how to create and sustain community through difficult times. You are the light in dark times, the matches struck unexpectedly in the dark, you are a glorious illumination in all of our lives.”