Limelight
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Student Profiles
Cici Curran LOWER SCHOOL
18
AGNES IRWIN MAGAZINE
FALL 2015
JOYCE SMITH
I
magine you are 10 years old, and Head of School Dr. Wendy Hill has just invited you to stand in front of more than 800 people and welcome them back to school. Your teachers, school administrators, your parents, and the entire student body, seated on bleachers in the Upper School gymnasium, are staring back at you, waiting to hear what you have to say. Fourth grader Cici Curran had that experience in September at the school year’s opening assembly. Standing on a footstool so she could reach the microphone, Cici spoke to the audience with poise and confidence. “To make this year great,” she told those gathered, “my advice would be to work hard, always try your best, believe in yourself, show kindness to others by respecting their ideas, include everyone and always wear a smile.” She stepped down to applause, striding surely back to her seat. But — that’s not the whole story, Cici says. “My legs were shaking the whole time I was up there,” she later admitted with a giggle. Cici, who has attended Agnes Irwin since kindergarten, models the advice she gave her fellow students in the opening assembly, according to her fourth grade teacher, Julie Haines. “She is dedicated, interested, sweet and kind.” Cici’s favorite subject is art, and so far, fourth grade is treating her pretty well. As fourth graders, Lower Schoolers take on a variety of new responsibilities, including serving as PreK helpers, teaching others how to recycle in the lunchroom, and raising the American and school flags. “The teachers are way different (in fourth grade). We get a lot more homework, and it’s a little hard — but I can handle it,” she said good-naturedly. An avid sports fan, Cici plays soccer, field hockey, lacrosse, squash and tennis in her free time. She particularly loves playing goalie on her township soccer team. “They make me feel like I’m family,” she said. That same closeness is true of her relationships at Agnes Irwin. “Everyone here feels like my sisters, and we treat each other like sisters,” Cici said. “My friends and I feel really loved.” — Amanda Mahnke
