Dear Class of 2026,
I have not had an ordinary Haverford experience. No parties. No beach or ski trips. A few sports games. No cafe trips or food off campus during community, ASB, and lunch blocks. Instead, fruit as mid-day snacks and home-made lunches every day.
Yet, as I list off these “unordinary” aspects of my time here, I realize that I’m still as much of a Ford as anyone else. And more importantly, Haverford’s Class of 2026 does not have one defining identity or experience.
Much of my connection and contribution to the Class of 2026 has come within the school’s boundaries. I’ve found a second home in the Conservatory, where I’ve perhaps inspired a few of the many lower schoolers who take lessons there to deepen their commitment. For others, this home was the Athletic Complex or perhaps Centennial Hall’s stage.
I must mention the school library, where I consistently saw the same 20 to 30 of our guys. In the short time we had between finishing lunch and our next class beginning, we formed a community housed on the center table. We had our final assignment and exam cram sessions; GeoGuessr and impostor games; philosophical, religious, moral, and straight-up stupid debates; and last-minute sprints from the library to avoid tardiness.
During spring break this year, a basketball league emerged: Ballright. Sometimes we played at school, but we usually traveled to the YMCA. Some of us drove almost an hour each way to hoop. The games are usually quite atrocious, but we’re having fun together, and that’s what matters.
“The Class of 2026 and the school in general has just been a second home for me; a place where I can go if I need anything at all.”
– Zach Faragalli ’26
The Class of 2026, specifically its student council, is responsible for the first Haverford Week, an inter-school battle between the maroon and gold teams held during the first week of February. We observed magical music performances, not-so-magical magic tricks, airballs, failed dunks, and an incredible buzzer beater. It provided us with fun rivalries and beautiful opportunities to unite. May this become a long-lasting Haverford tradition, starting with you, Class of 2027.
Beyond the establishment of Haverford Week, we upheld and grew our past traditions. EA Week was electric as always. We led great student sections, especially at basketball games. The team went undefeated in the Inter-Ac with last-second free throws from Sixth Former Dillon Gamble to send the game to overtime against Malvern. What a game for many first-comers. Students flocked to see Ragtime, starring many Sixth Formers such as Philip Okala Jr. and William Bradford.
“I think the Class of 2026 and the school in general has just been a second home for me; a place where I can go if I need anything at all,” Sixth Former Zach Faragalli said. “I think a great thing about our class is that you don’t have to worry about not getting along with people. I feel like I can go in and talk to anyone. Everyone has a good heart, and you can tell people have each other’s best interests in mind.”
One such moment came during the summer before this year’s football season.
“All of the seniors agreed to get up and talk about a hardship, a hero, and a highlight in their lives. I vividly remember [Sixth Former] Quinn Gallagher’s talk. He was super emotional and vulnerable; his hardship was the many injuries he had throughout high school, and the entire team then knew how much they meant to him,” Faragalli said. “He got hurt again during his first game of the season against Bonner, and from then on, we were able to gather around him and root him on and do our best to get him back in shape. His first full game was on EA Day, our final match of the season, and he had a great game that day. That success was super impactful to us. He didn’t even know if he was going to have a senior season, so getting to watch him do his thing was just awesome. I think that’s the type of leadership we embody.”
While it’d be great to say that we were unified, I think we can be honest with ourselves. Haverford has cliques. In fact, my conversation with Zach yesterday was my first after four years here. And it’s not just the Class of 2026 nor just Haverford. However, I think the fact that my conversation did happen is something special about our school. Two almost strangers, working together to sign the class off.
“There are times where the student body is really together, like during sports events and community moments like Haverford Week. However, outside of that, for the most part, we split into cliques, and the people within those cliques do get really close,” one Sixth Former said.
We often hear that Haverford has a super-inclusive tight brotherhood. I never really found that true, and I think a lot of people say it’s true but, deep down, don’t believe it. It makes sense. Administrators tell us that Haverford is this type of place, and all of those before us claimed that it was true, and how different could we be? And why should we not believe this great thing about us?
“Getting myself involved in so many activities helps me bring people together and really contribute to the brotherhood.”
– Colin Toth ’26
That is the problem. We hear we’re doing a great job, even when cliques still dominate the social scene. While it’s unreasonable to flip the script completely, I hope Haverford can start moving away from cliques, and the Class of 2026 has started the process.
“Something that separates Haverford apart from other schools is that we have so many amazing opportunities: I’ve gotten the opportunity to run a mock trial team and a tutoring program. Getting myself involved in so many activities helps me bring people together and really contribute to the brotherhood,” Sixth Former Colin Toth said. “Haverford is very hierarchical socially, just as at all high schools… You know, there’s the popular group and whatnot. But I don’t think there’s a lot of social superiority in our grade, and I don’t necessarily think the same of the previous classes.”
Sixth Former Manny Butts also aimed to bring people together.
“I try to be a guy who can relate to a lot of people. Here at Haverford, we all come from different backgrounds, but we share the same small place,” Butts said. “I wanted to be much more than this tall college-recruit basketball player who, well, slept in class. I wanted to be a funny guy who cared for everybody and made sure nobody’s left out.”
I, the 5’6” nerdy kid, became close friends with the 6’6” collegiate basketball player in this manner. I met him through my other friend one day during lunch. We saw each other as equals, got to know each other, and formed an ironic “beef” of signaling “you’re too little” whenever we saw each other—well, at least ironic from one side. And it’s something I treasure deeply: a special opportunity at Haverford, with its small yet diverse student body.
My greatest joy here has been getting to know those many people and hanging out with them.
We already take advantage of these opportunities, but these types of friendships should be more common. That’s what a community is about. Manny and I do not belong to the same clique (or any clique for that matter), and there’s a power in that. Many people in the Class of 2026 do not belong to a clique, and my greatest joy here has been getting to know those many people and hanging out with them semi-frequently, in the classroom, in the library, or at the YMCA hoops. This doesn’t look like the typical “connectedness,” but I argue it resembles a school-wide brotherhood much more.
So, while there will always be cliques, I encourage you all—genuinely, actually, for real—to go out of your way to get to know someone new every day for the many years to come.
Congratulations, everyone.
Ryan
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