Waynflete School held its graduation on June 12 at Merrill Auditorium in Portland. Sixty-eight seniors received diplomas this year. The following students were elected to the Cum Laude Society:

JACOB AUSTIN
Jacob is the son of Jim and Rachel Austin of Portland. An accomplished pianist, Jacob is a member of the Portland Conservatory of Music. He has performed as a soloist throughout the Northeast and as a chamber musician with the Bowdoin College Chamber Music Program and the summer festival of the Kinhaven Music School in Weston, Vermont. He has received accolades from the MMTA Pine Tree Competition, the Ocy Downs Competition in Portland, and the Bay Chamber Competition in Rockport. He was also a finalist in the A. Ramon Rivera Piano Competition at the Rivers School Conservatory in Weston, Massachusetts, and the winner of the 2015 Bangor Symphony Concerto Competition. Jacob participated on both Waynflete’s Mock Trial team and the debate team. He has written for the Waynflete school newspaper, The Flyer, and led Waynflete’s Current Events Club. In 2015, Jacob received the Waynflete English Department’s Barbara Freeman Award which recognizes achievement in literary scholarship. He plans to attend Columbia University.

ALEXANDRA CARRINGTON
Alexandra Carrington is the daughter of Heather Carrington of Falmouth. She is a Jack Kent Cooke Scholar and is devoted to the study of languages and the written word. She complemented her foreign language study at Waynflete with trips overseas. In 2014, Alexa received the National Security Language Initiative for Youth Scholarship to study Mandarin in China. She also participated in the Where They Be Dragons Program to study Mandarin in China in 2013 and was admitted to the Middlebury-Monterey Mandarin Program in 2012. In 2015, she won the Waynflete Linguistic Excellence Award. She also received the English Department’s Dow Cup Award for excellence in writing. Alexa attended the Summer Ink Creative Writing Program and submitted work to the Waynflete online newsletter, Upper School NOW. A four-year participant in Project Storyboost, Alexa has been a reading mentor to children attending Reiche Elementary School. She was a three-year member of the Girls’ Leadership Project. Alexa will attend Wellesley College.

HALEY JO CUTRONE
Haley Jo Cutrone is the daughter of Peter and Joy Cutrone of Hollis Center. She has been especially active in the performing arts with a focus on dance and theater. She has earned several major roles in productions at Waynflete and with Acorn Productions’ Young Actors Shakespeare Conservatory. Haley Jo received an award recognizing her performance as the King of France in Henry I/V at the Maine One Act competition. This fall she served as Team Captain for the Waynflete Mock Trial team. Haley Jo attended the CITYterm program in the spring of her junior year. She is committed to giving back to her community and mentoring younger students. She has participated as a reading mentor with Project Story Boost, and worked as a camp counselor for both Waynflete Summer Programs and Scarborough Community Services. She is also a Waynflete tour guide. Haley Jo won the Waynflete History Department’s Josephine Detmer Award and the Community Service award. She plans to attend Grinnell College.

MARGARET EDWARDS
Margaret Edwards is the daughter of Jon Edwards and Nancy Fox of South Freeport. A talented violinist, Margaret performed with the Portland Youth Philharmonic for five years. More recently, she shifted her focus and is learning to play the fiddle. Committed to pushing her personal boundaries, Margaret participated in two major bicycle treks. The first allowed her to explore the Pacific Coast from Seattle to San Francisco, and the second took her from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean back to those of the Pacific. Margaret earned Waynflete’s Community Service Award and devoted herself to mentoring younger students. During the school year she was a committed member of Project Respect and in the summer of 2014 she worked as a counselor at The Summer Camp, providing outdoor experiences for at-risk youth from urban areas. In the fall of her junior year, she attended CITYTerm. She was also the
coxswain for the Waynflete Crew Team. Margaret will attend Carleton College.

ALI GHORASHI
Ali is the son of Mehrdaad Ghorashi and Marjaneh Nikpour-Rahmatabadi, of Portland. Advanced in his study of mathematics, Al competed successfully as a member of the Waynflete Math Team, earning multiple medals. He received an invitation and went on to compete at the American Regions Mathematics League. In 2015, he received the Waynflete Math Department’s Margaret Chenery Award. As a member of the Waynflete Science Olympiad Team, he earned first-place finishes in the state of Maine each of the past three years. In 2015, he was a member of the State Champion Science Olympiad team that competed at Nationals. Al complemented his Science Olympiad successes with strong showings in Science Bowl competitions, placing second at the state level three years in a row. He also was part of the two-person team that won the 2014 MEST UP Maine high school quiz show. As a pianist with the Waynflete Jazz Combo, Al received several individual awards and was part of the 2014 State Champion Jazz Combo. Al will attend the University of Pennyslvania.

JACOB HAGLER
Jacob is the son of Andew and Deborah Hagler, of Harpswell. A talented musician, specializing in the jazz guitar, Jacob is a member of Waynflete’s Jazz Band and Jazz Combo. As a member of the Jazz Combo, he has participated in several competitions and received the Judges’ Choice Award at the 2015 Berklee High School Jazz Festival. He was also a member of the Jazz Combo that earned a second place finish in the Maine State Instrumental Jazz Festival. As a member of Waynflete’s Science Olympiad Team, Jacob competed at both the state and national levels each of the past three years. In his spare time, he enjoys figuring out how things work and is currently building his own guitar. A committed athlete, Jacob ran cross-country and played baseball throughout his high school career and as a senior, served as captain for both teams. Jacob plans to attend Colby College.

JULIANNA HARWOOD
Julianna is the daughter of William Harwood and Ellen Alderman, of Yarmouth. She was a member of the 2015 State Champion Science Olympiad team and competed in Nationals. Julianna was the Forecaster Female Athlete of the Year in the fall of 2015 and received the Waynflete Outstanding Female Athlete award. A reading mentor with Project Story Boost, Julianna also received Waynflete’s community service award. Captain of both the Waynflete Girls’ Soccer and Basketball teams, she received All Conference awards in both sports multiple years. Julianna participated in Model United Nations and received Honorable Mention Distinguished Delegate as a judge on the International Criminal Court. She worked at the Waynflete basketball after-school program for 4th-8th grades and in the fall of her senior year, won the Maine high school game show, MEST UP, with teammate Stephen Epstein. Julianna plans to attend Wesleyan University.

GEMMA LAURENCE
Gemma is the daughter of Henry and Sarah Laurence, of Brunswick. Gemma participated in Model United Nations, where she won an individual Honorable Mention award in 2014, and was selected to participate in Harvard Model UN in 2015. Gemma has been playing guitar, writing songs, and singing for five years and has been involved in two a Capella groups. She has been a contributing editor and writer for the Brooklyn-based magazine for teens, KidSpirit, for five years. Gemma was a member of the Varsity Nordic Ski Team, serving as captain her junior and senior years. She also ran for the Track Team, which she captained her senior year, and the Cross Country Team. Throughout high school, Gemma was involved in Project Storyboost, a reading-buddy program with a local elementary school. Gemma attended the Chewonki Semester Program in the fall of her junior year and returned to lead the Waynflete Environmental Action Group. She was awarded the Louise Dodge Stoddard Foreign Language Scholarship to spend a summer doing a homestay and taking art lessons in France during the summer of 2014. Gemma will attend Middlebury College.

ANNA MACLEAN
Anna is the daughter of Chris and Cassie MacLean, of Camden. She served as co-president of Waynflete’s student government and was the editor-in-chief of the school newspaper, The Flyer. An avid language student, Anna studied Latin throughout high school while pursuing independently a mastery of French. Anna earned both the A2 and B1 certifications administered by the Diplome d’Etude en Langue Francaise (DELF). Later this year, Anna is expected to obtain the DELF B2, a certification that allows non-native French speakers to work and attend school in France. She placed first in the state of Maine National French Contest, and is the recipient of the Waynflete Linguistic Excellence Award for her achievement in Latin. During the winter months, she worked as a ski coach at Sugarloaf. A National Merit Scholar, Anna plans to attend Bowdoin College.

DANA PEIRCE
Dana is the daughter of Linc Peirce and Jessica Gandolf, of Portland. Drawn to both math and science, Dana was a member of the 2015 Science Olympiad Team that competed at Nationals. She also earned multiple first-place awards at the state level. Dana successfully represented Waynflete in Science Bowl competitions, and was the only female member of the Waynflete Math Team. Inspired by conservation efforts she witnessed during a trip to Thailand, Dana conducted an ambitious, ongoing, research project focused on perfecting seedling dispersion for reforestation projects. Dana is the 2015 recipient of the Vergn Hewes Award, recognizing her outstanding achievements in science. Dana has played field hockey, basketball, and lacrosse for four years and served as captain for her field hockey team. She made both All-State and All-Conference Teams in field hockey and won the Coach’s Award in both field hockey and basketball. She is also an accomplished equestrian. Dana will attend Bowdoin College.

MADISON PELLOW
Madison is the daughter of Jim and Karyn Pellow, of Portland. Committed to community service, Maddy earned Waynflete’s Community Service recognition award as a junior for “far exceeding” the school’s service requirement. Throughout high school, she has been a mentor to a local fourth grader as part of Project Respect, and for the last two years, Maddy has served as a Leader for Waynflete’s Girls Leadership Project. She has also participated in Model United Nations. A talented athlete, Maddy is a four-year member of the Girls’ Varsity Field Hockey Team and served as a Team Captain both her junior and senior years. She joined the Varsity Ice Hockey Team as a senior and earned a starting position. Maddy received All-Academic recognition for both Field Hockey and Ice Hockey and was named to the Second Team All-Conference squad for field hockey. She plans to attend William and Mary.

SCOTT RALSTON
Scott is the son of Matt and Kay Ralston, of South Portland. He was part of the 2015 Science Olympiad Team that competed at Nationals and a member of the Waynflete Math Team. He also participated in the 2015 Science Bowl competition, placing second. With significant experience in the performing arts, Scott earned roles in several Waynflete theater productions. Drawing upon his years of training with the Boy Singers of Maine, he was cast as a lead in Waynflete’s production of the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. In 2015, he was accepted to participate in the All-Eastern Choral Festival. He plays with several area rock bands and in 2013 was recognized as Best Guitarist in the Maine Academy of Modern Music’s annual MAMM Slam. In addition to the guitar, Scott plays the keyboards, bass, and drums. He also worked behind the scenes running the equipment in a Portland recording studio. Scott plans to attend Earlham College.

LAURA VARY
Laura is the daughter of Cal and Stephanie Vary, of Windham. During her high school, she was active in several clubs and co-curricular activities including Amnesty International, Vocal Ensemble, Chorus, and Science Olympiad. Committed to giving back, Laura has volunteered as a junior volunteer at Maine Medical Center. Over the course of two years, she has increased her responsibilities and now, with one other volunteer, is in charge of the main lobby information desk. She has logged well over 100 community service hours and received Waynflete’s Community Service Award. Laura is a talented equestrian, and for the past five years she worked as an assistant teacher and camp counselor with a therapeutic riding program. In this capacity, Laura worked with children diagnosed with autism or developmental disabilities to improve their hand-eye coordination, balance, muscle tone and self-confidence. She plans to attend the University of California Davis.

ELLIE WIENER
Ellie is the daughter of Rob Wiener and Katie Clark, of Brunswick. Committed to service, social justice, and the common good, Ellie worked with both the Tri-County Literacy Project and the Mid-Coast Hunger Prevention Program to make a positive difference in her community. Given her impressive volunteer efforts, she received Waynflete’s Community Service Award. A talented artist with a passion for photography, Ellie was a key contributor to the Waynflete Yearbook. Building upon her love of photography, she initiated and maintained her own business producing numerous senior portraits for her classmates. In 2014, her photography was featured in the Huffington Post. Outside of school, Ellie is a committed equestrian. Ellie plans to attend Franklin and Marshall College.

Waynflete’s Class of 2015:

Seth Hoctor Atwood, Jacob Austin, Sarah Marie Baginski, Harry Baker-Connick, Nicholas Edward Boulos, Alexandra Arianna Carrington, Phoebe Colvin Oehmig, Joseph Edwin Connors, Haley Jo Cutrone, Abdirashid Mohamed Dahir, Maeve Grace Donnelly, Katherine Street Duvall, Margaret Fox Edwards, Harriet Lilah Edwardsen, Stephen William Epstein, Austin Zane Fanburg, Samuel Johnson Frederick, Ali Ghorashi, Karlina Angela Gonzalez, Leah Packard Grams, Helen Cecile Li Qin Gray-Bauer, Jacob Foster Hagler, Julianna Gail Alderman Harwood, Douglas Evan Hirschhorn, Erica Lynne Hirschhorn, Sahal Omar Hourdeh, Alexandra Lake Huber, Pace Jordan Hutchinson, Julian Tessler Ireland, Celie Hale Johnson, Jomkit Jujaroen, Gavriella Carter King, Alexander Patrick Lambert, Ellen Stark Langford, Gemma Felicia Lamport Laurence, Elise Brigitte LeBihan, Fox Allen Maasch, Anna Robinson MacLean, Jonas Zebediah Maines, Nicole Amber Maines, Allison Christine Mills, Clancy Christopher Cork Mitchell, Annika Maria Morrill, Graydon Nuki, Ayan Mohamed Nur, Elliot August Nye, Aidan Osborn Olney, Dana Haywood Peirce, Madison Marie Pellow, Scott McKusick Ralston, Graham Payne Ratner, Lily Fu Shui Reiner Dyer Walton Harrison Rhoads, Benjamin Samuel Riggleman, Michael Joseph Rodway, Isaac Salas, Rachel Olivia Schmidt, Jacob Taylor Soley, Hannah Reasey Thompson-Greaves, Codte Tiparos, Laura Louise Jane Vary, Lucy Putnam Weaver, Annarosa Charlotte Jäkel Whitman, Ellie Thi Huong Wiener, Chloe Rose Williams, Austin Charles Wojchowski, Brandon Michael Woo and Amber Nicole Yarn.