“I now declare you, on this 25th day of May, graduates of Saint Stephen’s Episcopal School.”

Seniors toss their decorated graduation caps, soaring them through the air, adorned with images of favorite childhood cartoons, bedazzled initials, and intended college mascots, each cap boasting the graduate’s personality. High above the crowd, an array of self-expression creates a rainbow, symbolizing the individuals who have made it to the end of their high school journey.

Except, this liberty isn’t a reality for Saint Stephen’s.

For decades, Saint Stephen’s has proceeded with the expectation that seniors are not to decorate their graduation caps; Seniors wear all-black robes with non-decorated black caps.

Head of the Upper School, Mr Forrester, believes that maintaining uniformity and formality during graduation upholds our school’s culture and signifies the immense importance of the ceremony.

“It’s not about allowing or not allowing; it’s more about honoring the tradition of our school and the community that we are,” Forrester said. “We have had a traditional graduation that has been very similar for 50 years. I am someone who believes that to continue a culture, we should honor the traditions of the school.”

For Mr Forrester, graduation is “an extremely important and special occasion where we honor the students for their time at SSES, what they contributed to the school, and how the school has contributed to their future… This is a time of dignified celebration.”

But, in 2024, it’s time to question this tradition. In my view, seniors should be allowed to decorate their graduation caps because the cap can be a direct symbol of the seniors’ individuality and independence, which our school promises to value.

Saint Stephen’s prides itself on promoting self-expression and individualism in every child. The SSES administration and faculty encourage students to stay true to themselves, and that is our school’s promise: “… that every student will be known and every student will be valued.”

So what better way to value and understand its graduating students than to let them create a small memento of who they have become over the past four years, who Saint Stephen’s has encouraged them to become?

Additionally, Saint Stephen’s mission statement states, “Provide a nurturing environment which values independence and self-worth.” Our school’s mission values independence, so it would be conducive to employ that value when it comes to our graduation caps, too.

Senior Samantha Mascera believes that decorating caps is a great way to celebrate the individuality and bonding of the senior class.

“How is every student supposed to explore their individuality if they can’t put their own mark of creativity on their cap?” Mascera said. “If you want to do something creative with them or make it pretty, you can; if you want to match with friends, that is an extra bonding moment, you can.”

Many colleges and universities encourage their seniors to decorate their graduation caps—UNC-Chapel Hill, University of Florida, Yale, Boston University, etc. The University of Michigan has student groups that host graduation cap-decorating parties. Also, the University of Southern Florida holds a competition to recognize the student who creates the most creative grad cap.

Additionally, Saint Stephen’s is a college preparatory school with the values of the liberal arts education model. A significant facet of this educational model is growing into one’s identity, freedom of expression, and individualism. This is why colleges allow their graduates to decorate their graduation caps.

If given the opportunity, many seniors have already thought about what they would like to embellish on their graduation caps.

“I would like to do a simple design—something that reflects my favorite color and my intended university,” senior Evie Baugher said.

Kensington Wheeler would want to keep it simple and classy with a “bedazzled big cursive ‘K’ on top.”

For me, I would mimic the design of my senior parking spot and paint a sky on top of my cap with the quote, “I’ve found my corner of the sky.”

Everyone wants to do something that is appropriate and special to them as the last opportunity to declare our individuality as Saint Stephen’s students.

With graduation still a month away, we still have time to rectify this policy. Let graduation celebrate the individuality of its seniors and let it be a showcase of the humans Saint Stephen’s has helped put forth into the world.

I propose a new policy: the week before graduation, students who choose to decorate their graduation caps must get the design approved by the administration. Then, on graduation morning, students can display their creativity and individuality with pride as they walk across the graduation stage wearing their beautiful— school-appropriate— graduation caps.