The Mount St. Mary Academy Class of 2026 received their diplomas and officially graduated from high school during this year’s Commencement Ceremony on Tuesday, May 19, at Robinson Center in downtown Little Rock. Per tradition, the young women wore white gowns and long gloves, and carried a single red rose, as they processed in through an audience of family members and friends and onto the stage.
The 119 graduates, admitted to 100 colleges and universities, collectively received more than $16 million in scholarship offerings and will be attending 34 different institutions of higher education across 13 states this fall. Additionally, this year’s graduating class completed more than 15,000 hours of community service for the greater Little Rock community during its junior and senior years.
Tim Glancy, longtime science teacher and coach at Mount St. Mary Academy who is retiring at the end of this school year, delivered the commencement address. During it, he shared gratitude, encouragement, and meaningful words of advice for the graduates. “My students have made me smile every day for 42 years. You all have played a very important role in my life. All of you have made me feel important and loved. I pray that all of us here tonight have given you the confidence that you need to succeed. And I ask you to use your heart and brain together. God gave you the greatest computer on earth – your brain – so use your RI, your real intelligence.”
Coach Glancy was introduced by Fourth Honor Graduate Lindley Dalton. Fifth Honor Graduates Addie Hilliard and Sydney Kersey offered the invocation, and Third Honor Graduate Amelia Byers presented the class essay. The official welcome to the Class of 2026 and the official class farewell were given by First Honor Graduates Alyssa Carr and Carson Vogelpohl, respectively.
MSM Chaplain Monsignor Lawrence Frederick, affectionately known as “Father Fred,” presented the diplomas as MSM Head of School Sara Jones and MSM Assistant Head of School Robin Johnson announced each graduate, her honors and the college she will attend. The three were joined on stage by Theresa Goshen Hall ’78, Arkansas Catholic Schools superintendent, and Donna Chachere ’83, MSM Academy Board of Directors chair. The evening concluded with graduates singing the alma mater together one final time as a class.
View photos from the 2026 Commencement Ceremony online at https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCUyza.
Congratulations, Class of 2026! We celebrate you and look forward to seeing all you continue to accomplish as women of wisdom, compassion and integrity.
