Introduced by Head of School Bill Taylor as \u201cgenuine,\u201d \u201creverent and irreverent in a remarkably human way,\u201d Head Prefect Kweku Arthur-Mensah’s address to the Class of 2025 was both heartfelt and honest.<\/p>\n
Taylor praised Kweku\u2019s ability to lead with authenticity throughout the year, describing him as someone who \u201cfound an authentic way to retain his jovial personality and congeniality with the more serious demands of being the top student leader.\u201d As he presented him with the McCollum Award, Taylor concluded: \u201cHe is not pretentious, not frilly\u2026 he is steady and humble.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kweku began his speech with heartfelt thanks to God, his family, and mentors like Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg P\u201910,\u201915,\u201923, Mr. and Mrs. Taylor, Mrs. Coratti, and Father Lennox. He then tackled a familiar question asked of many students: \u201cWhy would you go to an all-boys school for four years of high school?\u201d In Kweku\u2019s case, the answer included six.<\/p>\n
To explain, he told a story from his sophomore year \u2014 a time of, as he put it, \u201cknucklehead shenanigans.\u201d During preseason, with hours to kill between practices, he and a group of friends found themselves caught up in some questionable hijinks in the dorms. What began as harmless boredom quickly escalated, and eventually, disciplinary consequences followed. \u201cI wanted to be a leader at Trinity-Pawling one day, and I had humiliated myself,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI remember asking Mr. Keel if he thought I could be a prefect one day \u2014 he said I\u2019d have A LOT of work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
That transformation, he explained, is at the heart of the Trinity-Pawling experience. \u201cAt some point in everybody\u2019s Trinity-Pawling career, you will take an L,\u201d he said. \u201cT-P sets the bar high, and it forces students to get outside of their comfort zone every single day.\u201d What matters, he emphasized, is how you respond.<\/p>\n
He spoke with pride about his classmates, citing personal examples of their perseverance: Jackson Crisp \u201925 rising from the bottom of the class to Cornell; Ryan Bellamy \u201925 going from being doubted to varsity basketball captain; and members of the hockey team climbing from JV to one of the best teams in prep. \u201cThat\u2019s grit,\u201d he repeated throughout the speech.<\/p>\n
Kweku paid special tribute to the late Matthew Dooley \u201923, a classmate who fought brain cancer with quiet courage and left a lasting legacy. \u201cThat is grit. That is what being a T-P man is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n
He concluded with a charge to his classmates: \u201cWhen challenges come, when roadblocks get in the way, as a Trinity-Pawling man, you attack that challenge head-on.\u201d Quoting the Bible<\/em>, he added: \u201cThere is no darkness that which the light cannot overcome.<\/em>\u00a0Class of 2025, be the willers of light and go out and be the willers of good into the world.\u201d<\/p>\n With strength, sincerity, and his signature humor, Kweku closed by reminding his classmates that they are never alone. \u201cIf things ever do go wrong\u2026 rest assured you have 82 brothers that you can always lean on.\u201d<\/p>\n