PRESS RELEASE: GEORGE STEVENS ACADEMY CELEBRATES A WEEK OF STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Much Ado About Nothing closes to sold-out houses; seniors deliver powerful speeches; garden club earns major grant; and community events highlight student leadership
BLUE HILL, Maine — April 13, 2026 — George Stevens Academy is proud to share a week of standout student accomplishment, from the stage to the greenhouse to the concert hall.
Much Ado About Nothing Closes to Three Sold-Out Performances
GSA’s production of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing concluded its run to a full house — three times over. The show, performed in GSA’s intimate Black Box Theatre, drew audiences for every performance, each one sold out.
For five seniors, the closing night marked the end of their GSA performance careers: Millie Cowart, Matthew Patnaude, Eddie Knights, Hannah Maeve Was, and Gwen Fretz took their final bows on the GSA stage. The production featured an elaborate hand-crafted statue of Dionysus made by Earthworks B students that transformed the Black Box into a world of Shakespearean romance and wit.
Senior Speech Night Draws Community to McIntyre Building
On April 9th, GSA’s Class of 2026 along with family, friends, and supporters gathered for Senior Speech Night, delivering persuasive addresses to a community audience from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Using the Monroe Model of Persuasion — a framework for crafting speeches designed to inspire action — students presented the culmination of key English 12 skills including research, argument writing, and public speaking.
The breadth of topics chosen by the 34 presenting seniors reflected the depth of their engagement with the world around them. Speeches ranged from personal testimony —Anna Dovhanych’s “War Isn’t Just Headlines: What It Actually Feels Like to Live Through It” and Aaliyah Klemenz’s account of living with epilepsy — to urgent calls for action on local and national issues. Kedra Leach examined the decline of Maine’s lobster fishery; Brooklyn Merithew took on the state’s healthcare access crisis; Ethan Colson made the case for addressing the skilled trades shortage. Environmental themes ran throughout, with speeches on ocean plastics, mass extinction, drinking water contamination, and overconsumption. Other students turned their lens on social media’s mental health effects, the cost of college, fast fashion, food insecurity, and the hidden environmental toll of artificial intelligence. [A complete list of topics can be found in our April 12 newsletter]
Garden Club Awarded $1,500 Healthy Peninsula Grant
The GSA Garden Club has received a $1,500 grant from Healthy Peninsula to expand and improve the school's greenhouse and garden program. Funds will support the installation of drip irrigation and improved ventilation in the greenhouse, where students are currently growing scallions, garlic, basil, and cilantro for the school kitchen — fresh ingredients used by GSA’s own Chef Lu.
The club also has plans to redesign and install the planting bed outside the cafeteria, creating a mixed bed of native plants, cultivars, berries, and vegetables designed for year round interest. And across campus, the first bulbs planted by students are already beginning to push through the soil — an early sign of the season ahead.
The Garden Club welcomes community support. Volunteers, seed and seedling donations, and garden tool contributions are all appreciated. GSA students who participate in scheduled work parties will receive community service hours. To get involved, contact Ms. Lopez at a.lopez@georgestevens.org .
Prom Attire Exchange Coming April 17th
This Friday, April 17th, from 2:30 to 6 p.m., GSA will host a Prom Attire Exchange — a community clothing swap organized by Juniper in collaboration with GSA’s 2025–26 National Honors Society chapter and sponsored by The Blue Chill. The exchange is free and open to all. This is a lovely opportunity to find something special for prom while giving quality clothing a second life.
Free Jazz Concert Friday Evening
Also on Friday, April 17th, the community is invited to a free live jazz performance at 5 p.m. at St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church, 134 State Street in Ellsworth. The concert, organized by GSA student Cody Chattin, features the Crispy Chicken Jazz Combo — GSA students Cody Chattin, Bailey Townsend, and Fox Sweimler, joined by community musician Chris Pirsos. Admission is free, and all are welcome.
Contact Amy Strother, Communications Lead, at a.strother@georgestevens.org with questions, image, or interview requests.
