Some hallmark characteristics of the Class of 2017 are the girls’ deeply compassionate spirit, strength, and tenacity - along with the energy, talents, creativity, and student leadership they have brought to Hutchison. These same qualities were evident in their college explorations.
TOP HONORS
Sophie Merchant was awarded Senior Year, Top Honors and Four Years, Top Honors.
SECOND HONORS
Francie Sentilles was awarded Senior Year, Second Honors and Four Years, Second Honors.
IDEAL HUTCHISON GIRL
Kate Grace Cunningham was named the Ideal Hutchison Girl, as the senior who best represents the Ideal Woman as described in Proverbs 31.
EDWARD P. RUSSELL AWARD
Stewart Nichols was given the Edward P. Russell Award as the senior who, through leadership and devotion to the School’s founding ideals, brings honor to herself and to the School.
MEG THOMAS STUDENT SPEAKER
Sarah Austin was the Meg Thomas Student Speaker at commencement, shown here with Meg Thomas Crosby ’88.
COMMENCEMENT GUEST SPEAKER
Connie Popwell ’06 gave the Commencement Address.
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Class of 2017 Memories
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Class Highlights
Members of the Class of 2017 explored and pursued admission at a wide variety of colleges and universities. This fall, members of the senior class will attend 33 unique colleges in 16 states and the United Kingdom. In addition to traditionally popular schools such as the University of Mississippi, Southern Methodist University, and Vanderbilt University, seniors were admitted to such diverse schools as Agnes Scott College, University of Cambridge, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Cornell University, to name a few.
This year’s seniors were awarded more than $11.9 million in scholarships over four years. Eighty-eight of these scholarship offers are worth $50,000 or more, and 33 offers worth $100,000 or more. They also received 54 offers of acceptance to Honors programs at 16 different schools.
With the help of our dedicated college counseling team and school administrators, our seniors have made thoughtful and informed decisions about which colleges will best serve their individual interests and talents, where they will be challenged, learn from inspiring professors, develop life-long friendships, and enrich campus life through their academic, service, and social contributions. We look forward to seeing where their journeys take them from here!
Maggie’s interest in environmental science and forestry has grown through hands-on learning, inspiring mentors, and community involvement. After 15 years at Hutchison, she’s ready to turn her curiosity and love for learning into real-world impact.
Hutchison world language students participated in the 2025 U of M Language Fair, sponsored by The University of Memphis Department of World Languages and Literatures. Demonstrating their knowledge of Spanish and Chinese, Hutchison had nine upper school girls win awards at the fair.
Carpe diem! Demonstrating their enthusiasm for Latin and Roman culture, Hutchison had several students win awards at the Tennessee Junior Classical League Convention.
The College Board recognized Hutchison for our commitment to expanding girls' access to AP Computer Science courses, empowering students with essential coding, problem-solving, and analytical skills to pursue future opportunities in STEM fields.
There’s no place like Hutchison! After reading “The Canterbury Tales” in Kenzie Newman’s English class, our juniors led a modern-day pilgrimage across campus, sharing meaningful locations and personal stories.
Tyler Jones ’25 hasn’t had the easiest journey. After a long road to recovery from a knee injury, she worked even harder and signed to play Division I basketball for the University of New Mexico.
On WREG’s “Live at 9,” Dr. Ring, Hailey Litzsey ’25, and Malie Youngblood ’28 exemplified our mission of empowering girls to become confident leaders who know how to use their voices effectively.