As the Class of 2012 settled down to its final assembly, Tabor Academy headmaster Jay Stroud opened the June 2 graduation ceremony with a simple statement.

“It’s a great day to be a Seawolf,” he said.

While Stroud will retire this summer after 24 years as headmaster, graduation is only the beginning for the 152 members of the senior class.

“The faculty has worked hard to hold all of you to a high standard,” Stroud said. “I would urge you never to lose faith in other people. Class of 2012 you are ready for that challenge and I congratulate you in this moment.”

Tabor’s high standards have prepared the graduating class for anything the future holds, said senior and head of school Andrew O’Rourke. O’Rourke, a Marion resident, delivered the senior address.

“I don’t think we have to worry too much about the future,” O’Rourke said. “Tabor has prepared us, and we are all headed off to great colleges and futures.”

While writing his speech, O’Rourke said he passed around a survey among the senior class to discover what they would most miss about Tabor.

“The most common response by far was: ‘My advisor,’” he said. “Our advisors and mentors have been our friends and challenged us when we needed it. This could have been something as small as taking us out to dinner when we really needed to get off campus, or as difficult as helping us with a family crises.”

“We will always be a part of this place and we will always be proud to be a Tabor graduate,” he said.

For a complete list of Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester graduates, click here.

For more photos, and to hear Tabor's Madrigal Singers perform "Turn the World Around," check out the video slideshow.