With grit and a community of 'unconditional support,' Harpeth Hall students find their strength

Standing 19,341 feet above sea level, Harpeth Hall senior Charlotte Mikos learned that she has grit.

For six days, Charlotte fought her mind and body through altitude sickness, cold nights, physical exertion, and self-doubt to reach the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. As she stood at the top of the world and looked out over the “glacier-encased wonderland below,” Charlotte was filled with pride. She had done it. 

“Hard work, effort, and grit will get you to incredible heights,” Charlotte said. “Grit moved my legs as they pushed themselves towards the summit through the pain, and grit also taught me to appreciate my time on the mountain, even if I felt sick or sore.”

Charlotte carries those lessons with her into the classroom. Her grit and determination have shaped the way she approaches challenges from pre-algebra problem sets to English essays. As the president of the Cum Laude Society, Charlotte encouraged her classmates to find their own inspiration for learning as she shared her story of adventure at this year’s Cum Laude Society all-school assembly.

This April, Harpeth Hall’s Cum Laude chapter inducted 20 students whose curiosity and love of learning earned them recognition. Since its inception in 1906, the society has recognized scholastic achievement of students in secondary schools. The students honored at Harpeth Hall show excellence in their academic success and display strength of character.

The achievements of these students didn’t happen in isolation; instead each girl has been shaped by the communities that prepare her to meet challenges with confidence and resilience.

For Fran Maddox, Harpeth Hall’s director of counseling and the 2025 Lulu Hampton Owen Chair for Excellence in Teaching honoree, understanding the importance of community came long before she joined Harpeth Hall — and has been reinforced every day since she set foot on campus.

In 1992, all the younger version of Ms. Maddox wanted was to represent her hometown of Abbeville, Alabama, in the Christmas parade, waving to the crowd from atop the float wearing a sparkling crown with tiny, dangling gold peanuts as winner of the Miss Peanut Festival pageant.

In the small southern towns of her childhood, participating in the pageants was a part of community and tradition. Contestants had pageant coaches, worked tirelessly on their performances for the talent competition, practiced walking confidently onstage in high heels, and studied current events in preparation for the on-stage questions. 

She took it all seriously, developing her pageant poise and spirit. After months of hard work, she earned the title of fourth runner-up and someone else was given the crown. Not the result she had dreamt of for so long. Despite the outcome, she was supported and uplifted by friends, family, local business owners, and members of her town — even landing a front-page spotlight in the Abbeville Herald newspaper.

“Growing up with that kind of unconditional support is a true blessing. And I witness it every day at Harpeth Hall,” Ms. Maddox said as she gave the traditional Cum Laude assembly address. 

“I see it in your deep friendships and your fierce loyalty to each other. I see unconditional support on display in the stands and theaters at games and performances, in the energy of the audience at the middle school talent shows, and at the seasonal walkout ‘spirit tunnels’ for important competitions. It’s also expressed in the time and care your teachers use when providing feedback on your assignments, your report card comments, and, eventually, your college recommendation letters. It’s clear that we are all a part of the same team, and one person's accomplishment is everyone’s success.”

As she engages with the Harpeth Hall community every day, Ms. Maddox knows that, like in Abbeville, at Harpeth Hall, you are seen and known. 

“People don’t just recognize your name — they notice your strengths, your effort, and your potential, sometimes before you fully see it in yourself,” she said. “You are surrounded by a steady current of connection [that] makes you calmer, smarter, and stronger.”

Each student recognized at the 2026 Cum Laude assembly reflects what is possible in a community that both champions and challenges students to grow.

So, whether their dreams lead them to Mount Kilimanjaro or the Miss Peanut stage, Harpeth Hall students are supported and prepared to achieve them.

Congratulations to our 2026 Cum Laude inductees!

Juniors

• Emma Grace Cropsey
• Elizabeth Reagan Eyler
• Carlisle Scott Gambill
• Zoe Katherine Green
• Greta St. Clair Haroldson
• Margaret Randolph Meacham
• Cora Isabel Meyer
• Ella Suji Murphy
• Sophie Lyle Steele
• Thalia Chloe Vidalakis

Seniors

• Madison Lucille Camp
• Iris Maria Cotoman
• Leah Evelynn Fremont
• Miriam Rachel John
• Grace Gurley Johnson
• Camille Patton McCarter
• Evelyn Amelie McKnight
• Kennedy Grace Richards
• Sarah Heath Roper
• Emery Rachel Sonsino

Members in Course

Students

• Narcissa Phillips Broome
• Zoë Orabella Eveland
• Erin Motte Fikri
• Kelty Rayne Jones
• Lulu Sheridan Kohler
• Neko Ray Bernard-Mannes
• Allyson Mao
• Charlotte Lily Mikos
• Eliana Slobey
• Harper Ivy Thompson
• Lane Tyler Williams

Faculty

• Ben Curtiss Fulwider
• Keely Ann Hendricks
• Jennifer Jean Jervis
• Michele Lynn O’Brien
• Carolyn Grace Pearigen
• Randall Todd Pippenger
• Jacqueline O’Keefe Powers
• Rebecca Hopkin Smith
• Legare Davis Vest 
• Robert English Womack