High school principals write a lot.  I am no different, and Google Docs tells me I wrote 38,973 words last year in my weekly faculty newsletter alone.  I love this part of the job.  High school principals also speak a lot.  Between assemblies, coffees, ceremonies, celebrations, and meetings, it seems we are constantly presenting to a crowd.  Truth be told, I love this part of the job even more.  

Of all the words I write and all the words I say, however, there are exactly 100 (Yes, by coincidence, exactly 100) that are my favorite, and those are the final words I say to the graduating seniors before they receive their diplomas.  

The Commencement Ceremony for the Class of 2023 was my 10th at EAB.  In preparation for this entry, I reviewed all of my graduation night speeches. Though the opening of my farewell varies each year based on the personality of the group, the second half has remained largely unchanged since 2014, and the final 100 words have been exactly the same since 2017.  

EAB makes a huge deal of Senior Week. We have the Senior Run and the Senior Walk.  There is the High School Awards Ceremony, the Yearbook Unveiling Event, and the Senior Fire.  The kids graffiti walls, hike to waterfalls and jump off rocks into crystal-clear rivers.  In a show of gratitude to their school, the soon-to-be-graduates and their families host the Teacher Appreciation Breakfast.  There is the Senior Picnic and the grandeur of High School Field Day.  It is an incredible week, so much so that we hire a group of filmmakers each year to document the festivities. 

Unbeknownst to me, those filmmakers used my favorite 100 words to frame the final moments of the film for the EAB Class of 2023. 

Watching it caused me to think about all the other classes and all the other graduates I have had the privilege of handing their diplomas on graduation night.  It is humbling.  

I write, then, to share my gratitude to the American School of Brasilia and the 452 students who have graduated during my time as a Bull.  Thank you for your kindness, commitment to making EAB a fantastic place to learn, and warm embrace of the Bree-Bair Family.  It has been a great decade in our lives, and I very much look forward to graduation night for the Class of 2024 and beyond.  

Finally, no matter where your paths have taken you and where you are in the world, I hope you are leaving “each place you touch a bit better for your having been here with us at the American School of Brasilia.” 

David