Valedictorian address - Boris Popov

I would like to extend my warm welcome to all the parents and staff present here. Yesterday (May 29th) was a very important day for me. Not mainly because it was Baccalaureate but because yesterday was the birthday of the person, whom I admire the most - Alexander Popov, my father. This person is the perfect example of what I am going to talk about today. It is largely thanks to him that I am able to stand here today. He, like no one else, believed in me and has taught me to believe in myself. Therefore I would like to dedicate this speech to Alexander Popov, my father.

Today I want to share with you a certain message regarding my experience at Woodstock. I would like to talk about self-belief and motivation. I can say without doubt that Woodstock has had a strong impact on the lives of most of us, so it would be fair to say that the life experience we receive at Woodstock is as important, if not more so, than all the knowledge we got here. In fact, what sets Woodstock apart is that this life experience, unlike in most other schools, is part of the Woodstock education. It is hard for me to believe but it has been 6 whole years since I have come to Woodstock in 7th grade. Coming here wasn't easy. Woodstock is as different as it gets from my life at a Russian public school. For me coming here was like starting over from a clean sheet. I felt a lot of responsibility not to let down myself or my parents. I was determined and motivated to do everything within my power to do well here. And Woodstock did not crush this motivation and this self-belief - on the contrary it encouraged it, and made me enjoy Woodstock to the fullest.

I can't say that I have always been the perfect example of what I am saying now. Just recently, during the 2 weeks of AP exams, on which my university entrance solely depends, I had some strong doubts about myself. I was never sure whether I had learnt enough and whether I knew enough to get the high grades that I need so much. Yet, when I was about to stop believing in myself, there were my friends, who kept my belief in myself up by constantly showing their belief in me (in some cases in a very strange and annoying ways). This is another thing that makes Woodstock unique and special - the people here. When I speak of Woodstock, it's not the buildings that I am talking about; it's the Woodstock community - the community that is always supportive and helpful. We live in a bubble here. The outside world, unlike Woodstock, is full of people who will always try to put you down and make you lose your motivation and self-belief. But because of Woodstock, I think we will be able to stand up to that and find our right path.

I recently read about a study that compared the success of various university students. According to this study, the students who were accepted to famous high-ranking universities, like Harvard and Yale, but chose to go to less famous lower-ranking universities, still did extremely well in life - often even better than the students from high-ranking universities. The rank of the university is not ultimately the most important component for success. It is your motivation to work hard and your belief in yourself and your success. The primary purpose of school education is not just to stuff you with facts and formulas - after all you can do that yourself by reading a textbook - but to bring out this motivation and this belief in you. What makes the Woodstock education special is that it does just that - it makes you believe in yourself and be determined to always do your best. It teaches you to adapt quickly, which is one of the most important qualities in life. At least to me, that is what Woodstock has done and I am grateful for that.