CDH Seniors Give Back
by Greta Cunningham ‘23, Communications Intern
July 26, 2023
At the end of each school year, student council seniors present their peers with the opportunity to end their time at Cretin-Derham Hall with a senior gift, $20.23 this year for the class of 2023. Sophia Thomas ’23 was one of many recent graduates to donate, taking the time to reflect on her past four years and hopes for the next generation of CDH students.
“What really stands out to me about my time at CDH is the people,” she said. “I’m so grateful for my teachers' involvement and how much they cared about how we were doing. I met great friends and people that pushed me. I was always able to find a group to study together and encourage one another.”
While at CDH, Thomas was girls swim and dive co-captain and a leader of sustainability club, along with participating in People Finding People, National Honors Society, theater, softball, and mock trial.
“All of my involvement at CDH allowed me to gain great leadership and cooperation skills,” she said. “It helps you understand the importance of good listening and empathy that much more.”
Next year, Thomas is planning to study political and environmental science at the College of St. Benedict and eventually hopes to take those interpersonal skills to Capitol Hill.
“I've always had phases of ‘I want to do this’ or ‘That seems exciting,’ so l just started looking for trends and overlap. Two of things that got me really excited at CDH were sustainability club and AP U.S. Government. At first they seemed pretty different, but then I started thinking about the way they intersected with environmental policy and working on challenges like climate change,” she said. “During senior year, my Close-Up trip to D.C. totally shifted my perspective, and I got excited about the possibility of doing something in government. I love collaborating with different people, and working in one of the many different roles you find in D.C. could be an opportunity to do that with topics I care about.”
She was also accepted by the Bonner Leadership Program, a group of 36 students from St. Ben’s and St. John’s University, who, in addition to receiving a renewable scholarship for all four years of college, complete over 1000 hours of service each year as work study across over 15 different locations.
“My experience in Spectrum is a big part of the reason I applied,” Thomas said. “Service was one of my favorite parts of senior year, so when I saw the opportunity, I just thought, ‘I totally have to at least try to do this.’ I’m so grateful to have been selected.”
Spectrum is an interdisciplinary English, religion, and social studies class centered around social justice available to CDH seniors. Once a week, students leave campus in small groups to volunteer with various service sites around the Twin Cities. Thomas worked with a kindergarten class at Bancroft Elementary in Minneapolis, a school CDH Spectrum classes have a decades long relationship with.
“I loved getting to know the teacher and kids we worked with, and really, that’s what I’m most excited for in college: learning from other people,” said Thomas. “My favorite thing to do is meet people and make friends. I just can’t wait to start forming connections and bonds, bringing what I learned at CDH and transferring that over.”
It’s gratitude for those experiences and lessons, along with CDH alumni’s tradition of giving back, that encouraged Thomas to donate.
“I thought it was a cool idea to give back because there's so many alumni who are always giving to the school. They’re the reason we got the forum and the new STEM Center during my time here,” she said. “This place, the teachers, and the students gave me so much over the last four years, and I want that same thing to happen for all the kids coming in.”