The dust has settled. The SATs and ACTs are in the rearview mirror, along with Common Application; Advanced Placement (AP) tests have been taken, and college decisions have been made. Now, high school seniors are focused on savoring their final moments together before the dawn of higher education. With graduation on the horizon, the Catholic Standard met on May 18 with a senior from Connelly School of the Holy Child in Potomac.
Gracie Cardwell is still processing that her time at Connelly School of the Holy Child is coming to an end.
“It’s hard to believe that it’s already over, I feel like I just started and I just walked through these halls the other day,” Cardwell said.
Cardwell is a high school multihyphenate as she balances her heavy course load with her leadership roles in extracurricular activities, which include being a leader in the Athletic Directors Leadership Council, co-editor of the school paper, The Willow, and serving as president on the school’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.
“That has allowed me to really also raise awareness to important issues, but then make sure that everybody is seen. Visibility is something that I care a lot about and representation as well as hearing, allows people to be heard. I feel like that's one of the biggest parts of existing. People deserve to be heard because if somebody's not seeing them and hearing them, then who is?” Cardwell said. “That's very important for me.”
The Holy Child senior said visibility is important to her. She wants to be a lawyer – potentially in sports entertainment, and will begin that journey this fall by attending Spelman College, a historically Black liberal arts college for women in Atlanta, where she is receiving the Dovey Johnson Roundtree Presidential Scholarship.
Cardwell plans to major in political science with a minor in Spanish while enrolled in their honors program.
She plans to hit the ground running when she begins college.
“When I'm not being a student or studying, I'll be participating with my brother's school, Morehouse [College.] I'll be a student athletic trainer, and I'll also be working with their newspaper, the Maroon Tiger, and being an editor,” Cardwell said. “I'll also be doing service, because that is a part of my honor program requirement, [as well as] some side service, to make sure that I get familiar with the Atlanta community.”
One of her favorite courses at Holy Child has been her African American Literature class. As a woman of color, Cardwell said she feels supported by the efforts her school has taken to be an inclusive environment.
“Holy Child does a great job of making sure, and making efforts, to cater to each student, and I really appreciate those efforts,” Cardwell said. She highlighted the school’s recent dual enrollment program with Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia. Additionally, Holy Child helped Cardwell enroll in an English course for credit at Spelman last summer.
“It was very easy to enter into this program because of my college counselor,” Cardwell said. “She wrote my letter of recommendation and supported me through entering me in this program.”
Cardwell said she appreciates the efforts her school has gone for her.
“She might not have known a lot about the program or Spelman College or HBCUs, which are historically Black colleges and universities. But she did a great job with making sure that I was seen. I feel like that's what Holy Child does a really great job at. When they don't know something, they will make efforts to educate themselves about it,” Cardwell said.
Her time at Holy Child has also strengthened her relationship with God, and her yearbook quote from Psalm 46:5, “God is within her and she will not fail,” reflects that.
“I have taken God with me on this journey throughout high school, and He's the reason why I'm here today. I wouldn't be where I am without Him. So I have to recognize that He's within me. There's no way that I can fail. I am destined for greatness, and that is what God has told me. I feel that very strongly in me,” Cardwell said.
