Mary McGrath: a true trailblazer and positive light within our school community. Mary’s impact on MHS is unmatched, as she goes above and beyond to drive change, lift others up, and make Metuchen High School a better place to be.
“I’ve known Mary since we were babies and I can easily say that she is one of the best people I know. She’s smart, organized, funny, a dedicated athlete, and an amazing friend who is always supportive and willing to talk about anything. I have too many positive memories with her to recount, and that is what makes her so special to myself and to this school community as a whole.” - Annabelle Fedun
Concluding our Senior Spotlight series, Mary McGrath is the Bulldogs BARK’s very own editor-in-chief. Mary has always loved to write; she was inspired at a young age by one of her dad’s college friends, a writer for the Hollywood Reporter, who introduced Mary to the world of journalism. Mary had been a part of the newspaper since freshman year and focused mainly on school news. Throughout her sophomore and junior years, Mary added the Senior Spotlight column to her pursuits. The Senior Spotlights were her favorite type of article, as she loved meeting new people and hearing different perspectives. While Mary entered her interviews with a standard list of questions, she left with a paper full of personality, memories, and inspirations.
Through the BARK, Mary was able to build an incredible relationship with Mr. Mazza, the newspaper’s former advisor. She became his right-hand woman, explaining, “He would pull me out of any class he could stop me in the hallway, and say, ‘I need an article about this. Can you do it?’, then show me the length of the article needed with a brick on the wall.” Her senior year, Mary rose to the position of editor-in-chief, tackling the challenge of a major shift in leadership: Mr. Mazza, who had been running the BARK for decades, suddenly retired and was replaced by the incredible Mrs. Caponigro, or Mrs. Cap. As editor, Mary works to maintain Mr. Mazza’s legacy, his goal of highlighting individual voices: “Anybody who wants to be in the paper can write and can write anything, whatever kind of article you want!” This year, there was also a major shift in direction as the newspaper was converted into a website. Mary met with Mr. Porowski and worked with the Media Club to formulate an incredible website, giving the Bark new life with a fresh start.
“Stepping into my new role as advisor for the Bark, I couldn't help but feel the weight of the Bark's legacy on my shoulders. However, immediately after meeting Mary, all of my concerns dissipated with her warm personality and remarkable efficiency. Her knack for organization and foresight eased the transition. Mary is one of the people that is gifted with the ability to know what someone needs before they even know they need it (a skill that eludes even my tendency to overthink)! She's not only prepared for challenges, but navigates any obstacle with the ease of a bird soaring through the skies. Her inclusive approach encourages everyone to contribute. Mary's kindness and humor brighten every interaction, solidifying her as not just a trailblazing editor, but a future standout educator.” - Mrs. Caponigro
As editor-in-chief, Mary’s primary job is reading and editing student submissions. She loves hearing students’ diverse voices and learning about new, unique topics, but her favorite part of the Bulldogs Bark is the close relationship she’s built with Mrs. Cap. Ever since Mrs. Cap joined the team, there has been non-stop communication between the two of them. Mary visits Mrs. Cap every morning, sitting in her room before school and sometimes during lunch. Exemplifying the connection they’ve formed, Mrs. Cap has come to multiple softball and flag football games to enthusiastically cheer Mary on. Mrs. Cap has become an integral part of Mary’s support system and Mary knows she can talk to Mrs. Cap about anything.
As seen with her Bulldogs BARK endeavors and outside activities, Mary McGrath fully dedicates herself to anything she pursues, displaying loyalty, hard work, and passion. From an early age, Mary has devoted herself to softball, her journey beginning with T-Ball at age 4 and advancing to club teams and the MHS varsity team. After advancing to softball at age 5, Mary played with the Metuchen travel teams until age 8, when she advanced to join the Edison Angels. Following her mother’s footsteps, Mary has continued with her club softball journey to the present day, shifting teams depending on her schedule. She is currently part of Top Gun Softball in Hillsborough where she plays the corners-- third and first base. She loves being close to the ball, explaining how “you don’t have to think. It’s just field it and go!” and “sometimes you field a ball and don’t know how hard it was hit until you go back and watch the films.” The adrenaline, strength, and intensity of the corners are Mary’s favorite parts of her position, and overall, her favorite thing about softball is its competitive nature.
Mary has grown up with softball, and it has become a major part of her life and identity. One of Mary’s favorite memories is her and Leslie Flaherty making plays together at six years old in rec softball. Her love for the sport blossomed from there and grew into what it is today. Through her first year with the Edison Angels, Mary’s team frequently lost as they were new to the more competitive world of club softball. However, through her second year, Mary and her team had a better understanding of the game and were able to beat a formidable team, leading to their first tournament win. She can recall the entire game from when she was nine, remembering how hard she and her team struggled and fought and how overjoyed they were when they finally won. With high school softball, Mary recounts the adventures they had together and the roller coasters they’ve traveled. Specifically, Mary tells an unbelievable tale from freshman year, where a hawk dropped a fish on center field. She remembers how the center fielder walked into the team’s dugout exclaiming, “A hawk just dropped a fish on our field!” receiving shocked faces and laughs of disbelief. The team took pictures with the fish, and it was such an “insane and unbelievable” experience that Mary will always laughingly recount.
Pursuing the sport from a different angle, Mary began coaching town softball during her sophomore year. She rotates between 10u and 12u, helping out weekly and watching the athletes progress. Mary explains how the girls “are so little so you can teach them a lot,” with evident growth as they gain a better understanding of the sport (“And I know what to do! You taught me that!”) Stepping outside of her comfort zone, Mary also helped with catching clinics, focusing on younger kids aged 7-10. Even though she isn’t personally a catcher, Mary was able to assist her friend, Leslie, run the girls through drills, and gain experience with a different age group. Often, there are small games between the older and younger girls, and when the younger girls can win, Mary feels an immense sense of pride, exclaiming, “That’s my team!” Her favorite part about softball and any of the sports she plays is strategy. She loves running through different situations and analyzing the best way to react. Through coaching, Mary can further experience this aspect of the game, challenging the girls by “branch[ing] them out instead of doing the easy play to first.” She’s grown amazing connections with the girls on her team, dedicating her Sundays to watching their games and cheering them on.
“Mary is an incredible example of kindness and good work ethic! She is a great athlete and a great friend!!” - Swetangeli Patel
Expanding upon her softball skills, in sophomore year, Mary decided to join flag football. While the team was only meant to be upperclassmen, many of her softball team members were involved and Mary was personally invited by Mr. Cathcart. Her love for the team and sport grew, leading Mary to continue with flag football through her senior year. The team is coached by Mr. L and Ms. Abbott, who provide the team with unforgettable experiences such as playing at MetLife Stadium or on the Jets' practice field. While the team is larger than Mary’s first year, it remains relatively small. This allows for unique experiences, tight bonds, and a truly supportive environment, as she and her friends can learn while still laughing and having fun.
Adding to her athletic endeavors, Mary has played tennis for MHS since freshman year. She had initially joined as a way to meet new people from the high school and believed that her softball coordination skills would transfer to tennis. She was able to build an amazing community, an amazing network of support, and relationships with students from different grades. Throughout her first two years, Mary would travel with the varsity teams to watch games and support her friends. After the game’s conclusion, she would be driven home by Kaitlin Iong, a former senior on the team. Mary loved these car rides, later discovering that Kaitlin lived right next to the tennis courts, but went out of her way to make the daily drive across town, a true testament to the strong bonds between team members and the genuine care they have for each other. Over time, her tennis skills evolved and Mary was able to advance to the position of team captain. As she is new to the sport and hasn’t taken previous lessons, Mary focused on empowering new players and encouraging them to try new things and believe in themselves: “It’s working out for her! I don’t know how, but it’s working!” Mary‘s favorite part of the team is how she was still able to make it competitive, despite its more quiet nature. Tennis has a different environment than softball or football, but Mary would continue to express support, enthusiasm, and excitement, creating a lively air.
Softball has always been Mary’s favorite sport and a major part of her life, with lots of meaningful connections and memories; she’s played every weekend since age 8, and her number is 14, the same as her mom’s. Her dedication to and experience with softball benefited her performances in flag football and tennis, giving her a competitive edge, expert hand-eye coordination, and strong leadership skills.
Outside of her athletic endeavors, Mary is an avid participant within the MHS community with involvement in student council. She joined her sophomore year and loved attending the meetings and seeing friends. Mary would designate Thursdays as student council days, as she and her fellow members would have classes together and discuss council ideas throughout the day. Specifically, Mary loved working on door decorating, arriving early at 6 am, amped up, and ready to go. With a coffee in hand, a positive attitude, and plentiful excitement, Mary would energize her classmates, designate jobs, and explore the hallways. In addition to door decorating, Mary loved the main Battle of the Classes event and participated in the tug-of-war. One of her favorite memories is her sophomore year tug-of-war, where her grade was put against the senior grade. As it was a big football grade with a considerable size advantage, the sophomores made a deal to immediately let go, run away, and observe how the momentum affected the other team. This memory truly exemplifies the camaraderie of Metuchen High School and its tight-knit community.
“I admire how incredibly kind and understanding Mary is. She is always my biggest cheerleader and I love her for that!” - Juliana Johnston
MHS always ensures the availability of opportunities to its students, seeking out unique programs that allow students to pursue their various passions. Last year, MHS offered the ability for students to become Teen Mental Health First Aid Certified, a program led by Ms. Youngman and Ms. Huff. Mary eagerly chose to participate, attending various classes and learning how to assess how someone’s doing, how to help them, when to intervene, and when to get help. She appreciates the skills and knowledge this class gave her, enabling her to better support her friends and herself. Mary explains how “we all have our moments,” and explains the benefits of becoming certified, exclaiming, “I have all these different ways I can help somebody out now!”
As seen by her desire to become certified, Mary loves to learn. She loves to seek new information, gain new understandings, and meet new people with different perspectives. This motivation led her to attend three different pre-college programs. During her sophomore summer, Mary attended the “Debates in American Law in Society” program, hosted by Columbia. She found it extremely interesting, as she hadn't been previously exposed to many debate practices. The skills Mary learned have benefited her throughout her high school career, strengthening her contributions to debates and argument writing. However, due to the COVID-19 epidemic, this program was hosted on Zoom, forcing Mary to spend long hours on a computer screen. During her junior summer, Mary attended the “Law Ethics and Democracy” program at Brown, exclaiming how it was one of the “best experiences ever.” She was able to stay in the dorms and form many new friendships and close connections. With a large degree of freedom, Mary and her peers would embark on many adventures and explore the larger area. Because it was her birthday, Mary’s friends deemed the week “Birthday Week” and would dedicate each day to a new type of celebration. Entering her senior year, Mary spent her senior summer preparing for the college admissions process, attending a college readiness program at Smith where she took essay-writing classes and grew acquainted with the campus, foreshadowing her future commitment.
“Mary is an incredibly lively spirit. She’s always so willing to help her friends and has such a bright soul. She’s incredibly creative and makes bomb scrapbooks. She’s super intelligent and always manages to smile even when she’s having a bad day.” - Hannah Soden
Outside of school, Mary loves to organize and scrapbook. Whether it’s based on color, size, or alphabetical order, Mary could “organize forever,” armed with two trusty label makers and a newly acquired laminator. Her passion for crafting and caring for her friends truly shines through with her affinity for scrapbooking, as Mary began a tradition of creating unique, personalized scrapbooks for the birthdays of each of her friends. This passion began after watching The Great Gatsby in AP Lang, where Gatsby showed Daisy scrapbooks about her, leading Mary to exclaim, “That’s so creepy. And he can’t even scrapbook!” She then made an AP Lang-themed scrapbook as proof of her scrapbooking abilities, covering her room in sticky letters, glue, glitter, and fun paper as her new passion began.
Another passion of Mary’s is the Women’s Rights Movement, specifically the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention. She follows the paths of Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, two impactful, trailblazing women and leaders within the Convention. Whenever there’s an opportunity, Mary will eagerly bring up the movement, discussing these leaders in her APUSH essays, in her senior research paper, and in her college essay. Her favorite book is Feminism: The Essential Historical Writings, featuring essays, writings, and pieces of memories from different female leaders throughout time, and recently, Mary and her dad were able to see Suffs, a new musical focusing on the movement for woman suffrage. Through her AP Euro class, Mary can compare the European feminist movements with those in America, allowing her to expand upon her knowledge and further pursue this passion.
“Aside from being quite accomplished academically (have you seen her color-coded AP Gov & Euro summaries?!?), Mary is simply one of the kindest, most personable students I've had in my 23 years of teaching. I've been fortunate to have her 2 years in a row, and she really contributes to making class an enjoyable atmosphere - she's bright, funny, and makes class better for everyone. I wish her the very best with whatever the future holds, but I secretly hope she returns to MHS at some point down the road to tell me how much she now enjoys sushi and Almond Joys. Thanks for a great 2 years, Mary!” - Mr. Murray
When discussing her time at MHS, Mary emphasized the value of our school community. Exemplifying the strong sense of community within the Metuchen School District, Mary notes how with fun parties, live music, and festive spirits, the last day before winter break is her favorite day of the entire calendar year: “Forget any holiday, forget my birthday. It’s the best day of the entire year!” On Mary’s favorite day, you can find her walking around the hallways drinking a peppermint mocha with a candy cane in hand, an ugly sweater on top, and Christmas music in her ears. Mary has loved school her entire life, but high school has been her absolute favorite. Because of our school’s strong community and small population, students have the ability to form close student-teacher relationships. She explains how Mr. Murray knows every student’s name even if he has never taught them, a unique scenario that can only happen at a small school. Mr. Murray has been one of Mary’s favorite teachers, as he will help out whenever anybody needs anything, and if you’re upset, he will check on you throughout your day. He’s an incredible math teacher who has even convinced Mary, a self-proclaimed “English person for life,” to love Calculus.
“Mary stood out in my sophomore English class as a hard worker who genuinely wanted to learn. Now as a senior, I'm happy to see her smiling face during her visits to my classroom, and I know she has the brightest future ahead of her as an English teacher.” - Mrs. Wagenblast
Throughout her interview, Mary highlighted her passion for learning and her value on relationships. Mrs. Wagenblast, or Mrs. Wag, has had a significant impact on Mary, shaping the path of her future. Mary had Mrs. Wag for 10th-grade English and knew that for any issue she had, she could go to Mrs. Wag for support. She’s leaned on Mrs. Wag throughout stressful times and spent numerous lunches in her room. Mrs. Wag’s dedication to her students has inspired Mary, sparking her desire to become an English teacher: “I want to have an impact on people the way she had an impact on me.”
To pursue this passion, Mary plans to attend Smith College for the next four years. Its liberal arts environment strongly appealed to Mary, and because Smith has historically been a women’s college, it provides a new, different angle on learning. Smith College has incredible English and Education programs, and its small community allows for strong student-teacher relationships, one of Mary’s priorities. Smith has always been a major part of her life, and by committing to this college, Mary is following in the footsteps of her mother, a former “Smithie.”
Leaving her legacy at Metuchen High School, Mary wisely advises underclassmen to talk to their teachers and form meaningful connections. If they can build strong relationships, it will help them in class and boost their mood throughout the day. She emphasizes how these student-teacher relationships are the most important part of high school, as they will truly improve one’s experience and better connect them to the school. Mary McGrath has been an incredible member of the MHS community and has shaped the school for the better. Her passion for learning and care for others exemplifies the spirit of MHS and inspires students district-wide.
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