October 26, 2026
At City Academy, graduation is not goodbye. Alumni remain an important part of our community, returning to campus to visit former teachers, connect with current students and give back to the school that helped shape them.
During the 2025-26 school year, three members of City Academy’s Class of 2020 took that commitment to another level. Jerone Boggs, Candace DeLaney, and Andrew Ford collectively gave more than 150 hours, volunteering in classrooms, supporting special events and, building relationships with the next generation of City Academy students.
“When I first heard I was going to receive the Brightman Award, I was shocked. This award means the world to me.”
– Jerone Boggs, City Academy Class of 2020
For Jerone, a recent graduate of Cardinal Ritter College Prep, coming back has always felt natural.
“City Academy has always felt like home, a family that I could always come back to, and they always welcome me back with open arms,” Jerone said.
Jerone contributed 37 volunteer hours, helping in classrooms and after-school activities and supporting Trivia Night and the Back to School Celebration. Some of his favorite moments came from reconnecting with students he remembered and seeing how much they had grown.
Being back also brought memories of recess with friends, field trips, and lessons learned in the classroom. This fall, Jerone began his next chapter at Tennessee State University.
For Candace, returning to City Academy gave her an opportunity to give back while discovering more about her own future.
As part of her senior project at Westminster Christian Academy, Candace spent every Thursday morning at City Academy, contributing 62 volunteer hours. She worked with Ms. Hynes in Junior Kindergarten and returned to the classroom of her former sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Fennoy, to work with fifth-grade students. She also volunteered at Trivia Night and Field Day.
After completing an internship the previous summer, Candace was considering a career in pediatric occupational therapy. Volunteering with City Academy students helped confirm that working with children was exactly what she wanted to do.
“Being back in the same halls and classrooms brought back so many memories,” Candace said. “I’m happy that kids like me still have the opportunity to sit in those classrooms, learn, and truly take in everything the school has to offer.”
This fall, Candace will continue pursuing that goal at the University of Missouri.
Andrew experienced his own full-circle moment during his senior year at Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School. As part of his Winter Term project, Andrew worked with fifth- and sixth-grade students, helping with math, answering questions about the secondary school process and assisting wherever needed.
“I thought that I owed it to the City Academy community for all the support it had provided for me as a student and even more as an alum,” Andrew said.
Andrew contributed 51.5 volunteer hours, but his impact continued after Winter Term. As part of his work toward achieving the rank of Eagle Scout, he promised students he would create a life-size chess board for City Academy. Before heading to DePauw University, where he’s playing football, Andrew returned this summer to deliver on that promise.
“I wanted it to show the kids you can achieve any goal you set for yourself as long as you are willing to work for it,” he said.
At City Academy’s 2026 graduation ceremony, Jerone, Candace and Andrew received the Brightman Award, recognizing graduating high school alumni who demonstrate a commitment to giving back to their school community.
“Being recognized by a place that has played such an important role in my life made the award especially special to me,” Candace said.
From City Academy students to high school graduates, volunteers, and mentors, these three have come full circle. As they begin their next chapters at Tennessee State University, the University of Missouri and DePauw University, they leave behind a legacy for future City Academy alumni to follow.
No matter where their next chapters take them, they will always have a place to come home to at City Academy.