Laura Xia ‘25
In 1944, St. Mark’s established its own chapter of the Cum Laude Society, which was founded in 1906 under the inspiration of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, which honored the academic success of students in college or universities. The Cum Laude Society, its name being the latin phrase “celebrate together”, honors the scholastic achievements of students in secondary school. The members of the Cum Laude Society are carefully selected, including only the ones who demonstrate high distinction in academics.
In each chapter, no more than 20% of the graduating class can be inducted into the Cum Laude Society, with this number not being the standard but only an upper limit. In St. Mark’s, the process of induction is decided by the Cum Laude committee, which is led by Dr. Glomset of the English Department. The committee nominates students from amongst the group that meets a certain minimum standard of grade point average, and then takes a group vote to decide if each nominated student should be inducted into the Cum Laude Society. The voting is based on not only grades but also students’ demonstrated interest and curiosity in various classes. Those who are eager to learn and make the effort to learn are what the Cum Laude Society seeks to award. Since the induction process is highly selective, oftentimes the limit of 20% is not reached.
Announcement of the inductees each year is separated into two rounds, one earlier on in the year and one later. Then by the end of the year, inducted students from both rounds are acknowledged through an all-school ceremony that is preceded by a formal dinner involving the inductees and the Cum Laude committee. It has also been a tradition for promising students of the fifth form to be invited to serve as waiters for the dinner, in hopes that they will be joining the dinner as inducted students next year.
This year’s Cum Laude ceremony took place on Tuesday, May 7th. The ceremony began with a brief introduction by Ms. Cao of the Cum Laude Society and its chapter at St. Mark’s. Then Dr. Glomset talked about studying the fictitious, as an introduction to Dr. Barnes’s talk later in the ceremony. After his talk, Dr. Glomset introduced the fourteen inducted members of this year and awarded them with certificates. Finally, Dr. Barnes’s talk on the importance of studying what is not real concludes the ceremony, for which afterwards all inducted members are reinvited on stage for a group photo.
Each year’s inductees have the honor of having their names carved onto a platter that will be displaced on the wall in the space between the English wing and the upper center. The platters form a wall of Cum Laude members every year since 1944, displaying a stunning legacy that will be continued in future years. Unlike other platters, the Cum Laude platters are large and clearly noticeable by its location; its presence encourages students of all forms to strive for academic success in order to one day be acknowledged alongside all past inducted members. The Cum Laude Society establishes in St. Mark’s a valuable tradition that emphasizes academic achievements and celebrates the dedication and hard work of students who exemplify the highest standards of scholarship.