With 100 Days to Go, the Class of 2025 Reflects

On Thursday, February 20, the Class of 2025 celebrated a milestone — reaching the 100-day countdown until graduation. As anticipation for end-of-year traditions and celebrations fills the Upper School, we asked the senior class to reflect on their favorite KPS memories, and what they most look forward to over the course of their final 100 days. Here are some of their responses.

Alexa Garrido: “I started KPS in ninth grade. One of my favorite memories each year is Step Sing.* It's really special to see how close the senior class becomes, and it always makes me appreciate the time I spend here. I also love to celebrate the junior class moving up.

*Step Sing is an annual event in which the Upper School faculty and students pay musical tribute to the graduating seniors, with both humorous and sentimental results. At the conclusion, the senior class exits the Great Room and the junior class “moves up” to the section where they will sit for the duration of their senior year. They also introduce their senior mascot. 

Fionna Gambuzza: “I came to KPS in the ninth grade. My favorite memories were playing sports with Dragon athletics. Over the next 100 days, I’m most looking forward to spending this time with my classmates and celebrating senior traditions.”

Grace Williams: “I started KPS as a third-grader. My favorite memory was actually from that year, when my classmates and I were so inspired learning about Percy Jackson from the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series that we wrote our own book.”

Isha Talpade: “I’ve been at KPS since eighth grade, and I look forward to doing my best in school to finish the final 100 days strong.”

Olivia Hand: “I started KPS in sixth grade, and I love all of our traditions — especially Step Sing and Sticks.* Over the next 100 days, I’m looking forward to all of the community bonding activities and just spending time together as a senior class.”

*Sticks is a weeklong battle when the Upper School plays a grand-scale version of tag. Every student receives a popsicle stick with another student’s name on it. As they chase the person named on their stick, the sticks accumulate. The winner is the one with the most sticks at the end of the week.

Piper Mayes: “I started KPS in Kindergarten. My favorite memory is receiving a daisy* on my very first day of school; it’s my favorite KPS tradition. Over the next 100 days, I hope to spend as much time as possible with my classmates.”

*The daisy, Kent Place’s school flower, is a powerful symbol of growth and plays an important role in many of our ceremonies and special events. At Opening Convocation, every student is handed a daisy, and on Graduation Day, seniors proceed through the Daisy Chain, held up by the junior class.

Sophia DiSarno: “I joined KPS as a ninth-grader. As a senior, cheering everyone arriving on campus on the first day of school has been my favorite memory. It builds excitement for the upcoming year and is a great way to have a ‘last first day.’ Now I’m most looking forward to Step Sing.”

Valentina Martin Aloe: “I joined KPS as a ninth-grader. I love the memories I’ve made in the lounge and at soccer with my friends, but my favorite memory is the Halloween dance in 2022 when I dressed up as Vector (a character from Netflix’s Stranger Things). People still tell me they’ll remember that costume for years. I’m excited to enjoy the rest of senior year with my classmates.”

Zoe Reeder: “I came to KPS in the sixth grade. My favorite memory comes not from the big events and fun traditions but instead from the friendships I’ve made and the lessons I’ve learned. In the next 100 days, I hope to try everything at KPS that I haven’t tried before.”