The Gilman community celebrated the newest members of the Cum Laude Society for the 2025–2026 school year on Monday, October 13, 2025. After President of the Gilman Chapter (and Upper School Spanish teacher) Joseph Duncan read the names aloud during assembly, Secretary of the Chapter (and Upper School classics teacher) Sarah Miller introduced four of the soon-to-be-inducted members, who spoke about their intellectual pursuits at Gilman, highlighting and modeling the importance of academic excellence for their peers.

Peter Yang ’26 shared about freshman Robotics class with Director of Education Technology Lynn Nichols, which unexpectedly sparked his interest in STEM. “It was my first experience in learning the applications of equations — that seemed so static in math classes — to make physical components of robots move.” Yang would go on to win the Congressional App Challenge in late 2024.

When Matthew Chi ’26 learned about the progression of scientific theories on fire in his Chemistry class, it “captured what makes science so compelling. … The beauty of science is not in its ability to disprove but describe and ask questions of the world.”

Teo Garza ’26, who had previously feared Biology class at Gilman, decided to embrace the difficult course by “reminding myself I was capable.” He applied the same principles when faced with challenges as leader of the GreenHounds Club, and he encouraged students to “find people to push you … it’s those people that will make the hard seem way more doable.”

James McLaughlin ’26 talked about his experience traveling to Chicago on Gilman’s Mock Trial team last year. “While we didn’t win, I left Chicago with something much more valuable: a massive transformation in my intellectual capabilities.” He went on to explain how he learned to apply the foundational skills developed in his humanities classes to dilemmas outside the classroom.

Following the speakers, a small band played “On Broadway” — Hugh Ward ’26 on drums, Randy Liu ’26 on trumpet, and Ben Feng ’26 on cello.

Watch the assembly

On Tuesday, October 14, the group of 12 was formally inducted in the presence of their families at an evening reception held in the Library Reading Room.

• John Lewis Cameron
• Matthew Young Chi
• Benjamin Youran Feng
• Mateo Falcon Garza
• Jeffrey Hu
• Randy Xuecheng Liu
• James Richard McLaughlin
• Samuel Eric Nuermberger
• Max Justin Shein
• Hugh Henry Ward
• Peter Dong Heon Yang
• Kevin W. Zheng

See More Photos from the Reception

The Cum Laude Society was founded in 1906 in Port Deposit, Maryland, and modeled on Phi Beta Kappa to recognize and promote academic excellence. The Society's motto is Areté (excellence in scholarship and moral virtue), Diké (justice), and Timé (dignity and honor).

Gilman School has been a member of the Cum Laude Society since 1952 and typically holds induction ceremonies twice each academic year in mid-fall and the late spring.