New Trier seniors graduate in traditional black and white attire

Chicago Tribune

2 days ago

In keeping with tradition, New Trier High School seniors eschewed graduation gowns and mortarboards in favor of white dresses for the girls and white jackets and black trousers for the boys at their June 1, 2025 graduation at NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates.
There were 869 Trevians launching into the world beyond high school at the 125th annual commencement.
Handheld long-stemmed red roses stood out against the girls' white dresses, on a mild, sunny spring day.
'They've done an amazing job, an incredibly resilient class and they've accomplished so much over their four years and it's been great to see,' Paul Sally, superintendent of New Trier Township High School District 203, said to Pioneer Press.
Graduating senior Olivia Kim of Wilmette said, 'The pandemic was mostly in middle school for us but freshman year, we were still wearing masks and second semester is when we got rid of the masks.
'And that was weird at first, but then I got used to it.
'It was like the new normal, I guess,' said Kim, who added that the pandemic taught, 'definitely flexibility, learning to adapt and change, going with the flow.'
The program included the presentation of diploma cases after speeches, including by alumni speaker Cody Fry, raised in Northfield and of the New Trier Class of 2008.
Fry is a singer-songwriter and received global attention by being on the hit show, 'American Idol.'
'Be yourself,' Fry told the graduating students.
The student speaker was Neil Sanderson from Winnetka.
'As the Class of 2025, collectively, we accomplished a lot,' Sanderson said.
'I can confidently say, we made the most of it.'