Several students from the Class of ‘30 in St.Mary’s International School have been announced to be leaving at the end of the 2025-2026 school year, leaving many students surprised and feeling grief at this sudden farewell. About 6 students are announced to be leaving St.Mary’s, which is a few more than in recent years. With a lot of students moving on to a new chapter in their lives, other students are wishing them a bright future as their close friends and classmates. As for the ones who are switching schools, it is evident that they are feeling nervousness and hope for the future, and nostalgia for leaving their attached community.
Students’ responses from the survey generally express sadness and a wish for their bright new chapters. One anonymous response mentioned that “I feel that I wanted to spend more time with them if they were someone I cared about,” showing how people would miss and not like a lot of people leaving. Shoki(‘30), a student who is leaving this year, expressed his sorrow and desire to stay with his old friends, and Shogo(‘30), another student leaving, mentioned that he would miss his friends in St. Mary’s, but simultaneously, he is excited for the upcoming future in the new school. Shoki also mentioned that he feels bad for all the new experiences that he would miss out on by not going to the high school in St. Mary’s. He said he was looking forward to going on international trips and new opportunities he would face. Akito(‘30) wishes the students who are moving on the best of luck and hopes they can find new relationships and friends, as well as being hopeful for the new students and relationships that he will find when returning to St. Mary’s next year. As the end of the year is approaching, many students are found to be expressing their sorrows and preparing themselves for the upcoming farewell.
International schools typically have higher student transfer rates than normal schools. Every year at St. Mary’s, numerous students are leaving, returning, and arriving at the end of or during the school year. However, in 8th grade this year, it is found that there are more than the usual number of students who are suddenly leaving, which drew out sadness from many students. Transferring schools is a very significant and hopeful event in some students’ lives; however, it simultaneously causes depressing situations for many individuals, especially those who had strong bonds with one another.