n Saturday, May 19, Xaverian Brothers High School
celebrated the Commencement of the Class of 2018,
Xaverian’s 52nd graduating class. Diplomas were conferred
to the 178 graduates by Headmaster Brother Daniel Skala,
C.F.X., Ph.D. and Principal Jacob Conca ’94, Ph.D. Collectively, these
young men were accepted to 218 different colleges and universities. They
have committed to continue their academic careers at top institutions
such as Yale, Brown, Bates, Georgetown, Tufts, Boston College, Wake
Forest, and Rensselaer.
The valedictorian and salutatorian for the Class of 2018 were
both National Merit Scholar Finalists. They are Michael Fitzgibbons
(Valedictorian) and Armaan Dhillon (Salutatorian).
Michael, a three-season track runner for all four years of high school
(and this year’s recipient of the Student Athlete of the Year award), is
also a computer programming enthusiast, fluent in HTML5/CSS3,
Java, Javascript, Python, and Swift, and currently developing his own
programming language. Michael is a member of the National Honor
Society and the Spanish National Honor Society. He received four
gold medals for interest and excellence in Computer Science, English,
Mathematics, and World Languages (Spanish). Michael will attend
Northeastern University.
Armaan Dhillon has been active in all aspects of student life at
Xaverian, from serving as president of the Student Council and the
Business Club to captain of the Model UN and Speech and Debate team.
He also served as president of the National Honor Society, a member of
the Liturgical Music Ensemble, and competed on the math team. Armaan
earned the following senior awards: the Business Club Award, the X-Act
Award (a community service group), the Math Team Coaches’ Award, the
Model UN Best Delegate Award, the National Honor Society Award, and
the Speech and Debate Team Award. In addition to his membership and
service to the National Honor Society, Armaan is also a member of the
National Music Honor Society and the Spanish National Honor Society.
He won three gold medals for interest and excellence in English, Science,
and Social Studies, and a silver medal in Mathematics. Armaan will
attend Brown University.
In the valedictory address, Michael Fitzgibbons encouraged his
classmates to continue to live the Xaverian call to be men of integrity who
make good things happen:
One of the main ideas which Xaverian sought to instill in us is the idea
of becoming men of integrity. Though this phrase may have been uttered
a thousand times in our four years here to the point where most of us roll
our eyes when we hear it, it is significant in answering the question of why
we are here today. A lot of us will do important things and become leaders
in the world. The world needs men who will do the right thing with their
power, acting with integrity. We cannot trust that good things will simply
happen. We need to be the people that go out and make them happen.
Each year, the members of the graduating class and faculty nominate
a senior for the Xaverian Award, the highest honor bestowed. This
year’s Xaverian Award winner was William Perry. Brother Dan praised
William’s “stunning embodiment of Theodore Ryken’s vision of a band of
brothers who mutually help, encourage, and edify one another.” He said
that William will live in the school’s history as one of Xaverian’s greatest
role models: “His humility is authentic and a shining example of a young
man who is comfortable in his own skin and true to his convictions. He
has never pretended to be anything other than himself, and that has made
all the difference.”
William is a member of the National Honor Society, the National
Music Honor Society, and the Spanish National Honor Society. He won
Theology and Fine Arts gold medals, as well as a silver medal in World
Languages (Spanish). William will attend Brown University.
CELEBRATING
THE CLASS OF 2018
Adam Salachi ’18
will attend Boston
University.
Brother Daniel Skala, C.F.X., William Perry ’18, and Dr. Jacob Conca ’94.
William will attend Brown University.
6 www.xbhs.com