She’s streaming across Miracle Field in her soccer cleats and scores a beautiful goal, causing a surge of girls in red to rejoice and offer her hugs and high-fives. She’s laughing with her friends in the Senior Commons as their purple lockers swing shut and they head to their next class. She’s walking up the aisle of the chapel to bring the gifts to Fr. John, or steadily holding a tray for everyone in line for Communion at daily mass. She’s intently watching her friends dribble across the court in the A&A with a smile on her face as she records the names and numbers of the game on a clipboard. She’s leaning in close as she focuses her camera lens just right before she snaps a photo of a cluster of smiling girls in the hallway.

Steph Ciampa ‘20 has brought her heart to every single corner of Montrose School. From her countless seasons on Montrose’s soccer teams, to stage managing numerous productions in the A&A, she’s grown to be an integral part of the student body. But beyond this, she’s always been a friendly face for everyone in the Montrose hallways, and we will all miss her smile next year.

“Before I was a student here, I didn’t really want to come to Montrose,” Steph shared. “At first, I really wasn’t too thrilled with the idea of an all-girls school. But my teachers really taught me confidence, and that it’s okay to be wrong, and that you can work through problems — inside and outside of school.”

Throughout high school, Steph has also been a member of the Looking Glass. She’s our incredible Photography Editor — the face behind all of the photos you’ve seen in our print editions for the past two years.

“I remember my mom got a nice Canon camera when I was in about sixth grade, and I’d play around in my yard with it, taking photos of flowers and trees,” Steph recalled. “Then, in ninth or tenth grade, I started taking my camera to school to take photos of my friends during their sports games. Mrs. Whitlock heard about that and asked me to start taking photos for the newspaper, so that’s kind of how it happened.”

Soccer has also played an important role in Steph’s time at Montrose. “My favorite memory at Montrose would be when I was in sixth and seventh grade on the JV soccer team. We’d run across the field before a game and Father Dick would bless all of us one by one, and it was just a really happy memory.” This year, Steph was one of the four seniors who led the Varsity Soccer team to victory in yet another IGC Championship title! The bonds that she created with her teammates back in middle school shaped her into a leader and someone to look up to on the field.

In addition, Steph spent many after school sessions during her time at Montrose behind the curtains of the A&A stage. Steph was the stage manager for numerous Montrose productions and shared that her favorite shows were Fiddler on the Roof in 2016 and Through the Looking Glass in 2018. 

When asked about what shaped her during her time at Montrose, Steph said that it was “being able to be a leader, and also learn how to work with other people.” We all admire her for her leadership and friendship at Montrose — she’s welcoming to all and always works hard in everything she does.

At Montrose, Steph has modeled what it means to do what you love with all your heart. But even more importantly, she’s one of the most humble people in our school. She’s spent hours behind the velvet curtains of the stage. She stood behind the camera and snapped hundreds of photos of girls at our school. She’s been an integral teammate on the Varsity Soccer team, and she’s always been someone we can count on in the newspaper.

Steph, we’re so grateful for all that you’ve done for Montrose and the Looking Glass! You’re humbly confident, beautifully caring, and constantly kind. From the bottom of our hearts — thank you. We wish you the best of luck at Sacred Heart University next year, and we hope you come back and visit!

Love,

The Looking Glass

Maevis Fahey ‘21, Editor-in-Chief

21mfahey@montroseschool.org