Still Flying: Celebrating 80 Years of The Pelican

The winter term archives exhibit is Still Flying: Celebrating 80 Years of The Pelican. What makes this exhibit special is that it was curated by a group of Pelican staffers, led by their enthusiastic editors-in-chief Elle Ruminski ’26 and Aedyn Kourakos ’26. They spent some of their free time at the end of fall term perusing old issues of The Pelican and then choosing the articles and headlines that best illustrated the history of the paper, and thus the history of St. Paul’s School. In the introduction to the exhibit, Elle wrote:

“As you walk through this exhibit, each case corresponds to a different decade over the last 80 years, with headlines, polls, maps, photos, and articles taken from The Pelican. You’ll read and see how St. Paul’s responded to change not just on our campus, but in the world at large. How did students feel about growing nuclear tensions during the Cold War? What was the impact of 9/11 on campus? Did students experience racism or sexism? Across the cases, you’ll notice recurring themes of diversity (in culture, perspective, race), discourse, and celebration of arts, sports, and school spirit. By stepping into the past and tracing its persistent manifestation from 1945 to 2025, we’ll gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a St. Paul’s student. The student curators of each case have deliberately chosen material to serve as a testament to how St. Paulians use their voices for good; like the 80 decades of students before us, we too must learn to bear witness to the problems before us and be respectful, courageous, and attentive to ensure that we pelicans keep flying.”

Interested in learning more about your school newspaper? The exhibit will be up through winter term or you can browse old issues of The Pelican HERE. Either way, be sure to congratulate Elle ’26, Aedyn ’26, Alexandra B. ’28, Alexandra C. ’28, Alice ’28, Elizabeth ’28, Eva ’28, Sophia ’29, and Wrenn ’26 for their amazing work!