“Ryan has a prodigious intellect, one that he is constantly looking to grow,” said Headmaster Bill Taylor during his address at Commencement introducing Ryan Winn as the Class of 2017 Valedictorian. “When I gave him his grades for the last marking period of his high school career, one that boasted grades in the high 90s and effort marks of 1 in all subjects, I said that he was keeping the pedal to the metal until the very end. With a wry smile, he simply said, ‘Is there any other option?’” For those that have known Ryan over the course of his time at Trinity-Pawling, whether as teachers, coaches, or friends, many sentiments echo those of Headmaster Taylor. “As Ryan has often said, ‘I am here to make dents in the universe’,” Headmaster Taylor mentioned in his address. “We have seen the dents here at Trinity-Pawling and there is one thing I can predict for the dents he will make at Bowdoin College and beyond—they will only grow more pronounced.”
Headmaster Taylor continued his introduction, “Ryan loves learning. He was the only student in an independent study class that spent the year studying James Joyce’s Ulysses—a class that culminated with a 30 plus page thesis. When one of his teachers referenced ‘senioritis,’ Ryan remarked, ‘I just don’t get it—we are here to learn.’”
Fittingly, Ryan’s Valedictory speech related the high school experience of a teenage boy to that of his own struggles to understand Ulysses, and Joyce’s style of writing in a stream of consciousness fashion. “When things get difficult just keep going, and hopefully you will have an understanding of what it’s all about,” Ryan said in his speech.
“High school can be a tough and confusing time, but we all lucked out because we had the luxury of having that time be at Trinity-Pawling. Trinity-Pawling; a place where the teachers will continuously push every student to their greatest potential; a place where the teachers care more about students and whether they succeed or not, than anywhere else; a place where you can make some of the best friends of your life that you will never forget; a place where you are so close on the sports fields you’d be willing to die for your teammate next to you; a place that teaches you to go after what you want; and a place that teaches you to have no fears,” Ryan said.
To end his speech, Ryan charged his classmates, “Let’s go out and attack the world, because I am tired of hearing all of us talk and am excited to hear people start talking about us. Thank you, and once again, congratulations to the Class of 2017! Roll Pride.”