Passing the Torch with a Pin at Archway Glendale

At Archway Glendale, the end of the school year brought a new tradition that celebrated leadership, saying meaningful goodbyes, and welcoming new beginnings. The Pinning Ceremony honored the fifth-grade class as they passed on their leadership role to the rising fourth graders with a symbolic gesture of giving a Golden Eagle pin to the rising class.

Sara Swinford, Assistant Headmaster at Archway Glendale, shared the heart behind the new tradition. “The fifth graders being able to pass that pin on, give that fourth grader a new pin and being able to pass that torch and the responsibility of leadership of the school. It also allowed for our fourth graders to take a seat where our fifth graders traditionally sit during assemblies and so that was meaningful too.”

This was the first year for the Golden Eagle pins, a simple but powerful symbol of leadership. Archway has always seen fifth graders as the leaders of the school, but the pins added something new. A visual reminder of what it means to soar.

Swinford explained, “Every Friday over our morning announcements, Mrs. DeStefano always says, ‘Golden Eagles, go forth and soar.’ And she speaks about what soaring means. It means not just getting through the day. It means really showing up as a leader, setting an example, being a person of integrity and virtue. And that’s what we call our fifth graders to be. And so, this year she went to their classes and gave them each a Golden Eagle pin and spoke about soaring and what that means.”

As the fourth graders stepped into this new role, the ceremony served as a goodbye to the fifth graders, and also as a way to build excitement for what’s ahead.

“Fourth graders now taking that position, we reflected and thought how can we make that meaningful, how can we end our year strong and be setting them up as leaders for next year and have them excited about that new role and also give that goodbye to our fifth graders who have demonstrated soaring so well over the year.”

For fifth grader Ethan Trojan, the moment came with a mix of emotions. “I went here for my whole life and now I’m moving on too. It was bittersweet,” he shared.

And then came the confetti, an unexpected and joyful addition to the ceremony that actually started as Trojan’s idea. “The celebratory part of the assembly today was actually a brainchild of one of our fifth graders,” added Swinford. “Can we find a way that every fifth grader can get involved? Can we find a more appropriate time, a more celebratory event that we can have this great idea? They decided to do it at the assembly, it landed with the school assembly and so he has inspired this new tradition for our school and it’s really exciting.”

The assembly included lively performance from Archie the Golden Eagle, who danced his way into everyone’s hearts. At one point, he was even joined by Headmaster DeStefano for an on-stage dance-duet.

What started as a simple idea turned into a schoolwide celebration at Archway Glendale and a new tradition that symbolizes both gratitude and growth. The fifth graders passed the torch with humility and school pride, while the fourth graders rose to meet the moment, ready to “Go forth and soar.”

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