As crowds of Webb students donned their school uniform and filed into chapel on October 21st, 2024, they noticed that many changes have been made this year to the Honor Pledge Ceremony.  

The WSC Honor Pledge Ceremony originated in the mid 90s as a way for the Webb community to embrace a pillar of Webb’s mission: leading honorably and in the day to day and serving others through daily actions. During the previous ceremonies, WSC sophomores, juniors, and seniors had the option to sign the Honor Pledge book, and all WSC students were required to attend. 

This year, female identifying students were invited to sign for the first time, marking it as the first co-ed ceremony as Webb transitions into a one-school model.  

“Honor is the core of the school,” said Wendy Maxon, humanities department faculty and faculty advisor of the honor council. “It makes sense to have a moment where we all come together and really think about it. [Signing the pledge is] voluntary, which is important, because now it is a choice that individuals are making — it really should be the entire school making that decision.” 

Since the Chapel did not have space to accommodate all Webb students, students who had previously signed the pledge or who were signing the pledge sat outside in the chapel parking lot, watching a live stream outside.  

“The Chapel is what we consider a sacred space on campus, and this ceremony holds a lot of weight and a lot of significance,” said Sarah Lantz, Dean of Students. “We felt like the best location for that is the Chapel.”   

Prior to the ceremony, WSC students who had previously signed the pledge re-signed their name in the brand-new book that represented the one-school model. The ceremony began with words from the HC chairs and the school singing both “Daughters Strong” and “Honor the Blue and Gold.” As the signing of the pledge commenced, students who had signed up to participate were escorted by a student who had previously signed the pledge. Both students and escorts organized themselves to a line outside before processing into the chapel. 

“Since the escorts and those who were signing already had a part in the ceremony, we felt it was best to kind of have them outside together because they would be coming into the chapel to participate in the ceremony,” Dean Lantz said. “I didn’t want to just have freshmen who were not part of the ceremony be sitting outside.” 

As the ceremony concluded with students singing “The Farewell Song,” the whole school gathered on Centennial Field to share a community dinner. Overall, students were receptive to the change, and the ceremony went smoothly. 

“I think the speaker system was organized and set up well, so we were able to line up well and efficiently while entering,” said Aaron Yang (‘25), an escort during the ceremony. “I think [the new ceremony] is very similar to WSC Candlelight Dinner, in the way that in Candlelight, a senior pass downs a candle to an underclassman, but now in the Honor Pledge Ceremony, there is an escort accompanying you. I really like that.” 

As this year’s Honor Pledge ceremony marks the first of many co-ed ceremonies, more changes will follow to better serve our school’s evolving needs. 

“I love the idea of a unified ceremony, and I think I’m very glad we did that,” Dr. Maxon said. “I think there are a few logistical things that need to be reconsidered for efficiency and logistical sake, but we will work through those in coming years.”