The Friday the first week back from winter break, Hackley’s senior class had the chance to see both familiar faces and old friends, as well as to learn from a panel of individuals who have all been in their shoes––former Hackley graduates.
Meeting in the Lindsay Room, these students enjoyed a small reunion with friends who had graduated in recent years. However, they were also given an opportunity to receive insight from a panel mostly made up Hackley alumni who are now successful in their respective fields.
The members of the panel had similarities with each other as well as with Hackley’s current seniors. Some, such as corporate lawyer Eric Gyasi, competed in sports, some wrote for the Vision or The Dial, and others, like comic writer Julia Nathan, were involved in the arts.
Noah Silver, a member of the class of 2006 and a Harvard graduate, currently works in finance at PIA. Patricia DeCenzo, another Harvard alum who graduated from Hackley in 2002, was a financial analyst at Morgan Stanley before studying medicine and becoming Chief Resident at the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Columbia University. Julia Nathan, a 2007 graduate, attended NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts before writing for The Onion, Saturday Night Live, and Nickelodeon.
Many Hackley seniors who attended the meeting were initially unsure of what to expect, but eventually found it to be informative and enjoyable. In particular, they found Ms. Nathan to be entertaining, due to her unique insight and blunt sense of humor. She urged students to follow their passions and to pursue what they love, rather than what their parents want them to do.
Alumni and Development Associate, Margie Ford, said that Hackley is unique in its use of networking between past and present students. In a world of social media, with availability to services such as LinkedIn and Facebook, people around the world have many ways to connect with former students with the same interests, and to create a community in which individuals can reach out to one another for help.
The network at Hackley is used to help establish internships for its seniors, but can also help students learn more about certain careers. The students in attendance responded extremely well to the reception, because of the entertainment from the guest speakers and the exposure to different types of careers.
Damis Yancopoulos, who attended the meeting, said, “it was also very inspiring to hear these people’s stories. It made us realize that even though it seems like many of us have our lives planned out, we do not need to have a clue about what we want to do in order to be successful.”
Many of the alumni said they would return for next year’s reception. Regarding what makes Hackley alumni similar, Ford stated that the Hackley students are passionate about their school, and want to help others who are in their shoes. Mae McColl said, “I think it’s great that Hackley keeps high school friends in touch and connected through the school. We’ll all come back to this place as friends because we love it, and because it’s important to us.” Ms. Ford stresses that when Hackley graduates have been asked to speak at the annual alumni reception, the offer has never been turned down.
