Belmont Schools Celebrate ‘Moving Up’ Students

Belmont Public Schools (BPS) closed out the 2025-2026 school year last week, with ceremonies across the district celebrating students moving on to the next stage of their education journey.

“Moving up” marks a student’s graduation from their current school. Whether it’s from their neighborhood elementary school to Chenery Upper Elementary School or from middle school to high school, hundreds of Belmont students are taking on a new school, and new challenges, in the fall.

“We don’t remember all of the names and faces of the past nine years, but we do remember the feelings, the memories, the true high points of our education at important turning points in our lives,” said eighth grader Campbell Sassone, a speaker for the middle school’s “Resilience” team.

At Belmont Middle School, eighth grade students prepared to take on the next four years of high school. Though they’ll be in the same building, students said the change is sure to be felt.

“We’ve learned how to overcome challenges, work together, and keep going when things get tough. As we move on to high school, I hope that we carry what our team names are, persevere to keep going, resilience to come back, and tenacity keep chasing our dreams,” said Thomas Zheng during his remarks representing the middle school’s “Perseverence” team. “Next year will bring new teachers, new opportunities, and probably, it will bring a few wrong turns, but we’ll figure it out as we always do.”

At Chenery Upper Elementary School, rising sixth grade students were revered for their continued resilience. From being some of the youngest students to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic to being the first group of fifth graders to come to Chenery when the school welcomed fourth graders, Principal Laura Smith said the group defines what it means to persevere.

“You embraced change with excitement, enthusiasm, and an openness to new experiences. You helped build something entirely new, and because of that, your class will always hold a special place in the history of this school,” Smith said in her remarks.

At elementary schools across the district, students were celebrated for their eagerness to learn and kindness toward each other. Students sang songs, and Burbank students continued the annual tradition of giving flowers to their loved ones in the crowd.

Students will return to school on Sept. 2.

Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story had the incorrect school year. The students just finished the 2025-2026 academic year. A clarification has also been made for which class of students was the first group of fourth graders at Chenery.