End-of-Year party & Commencement 2025-2026
We are honored to invite Forest School families, friends, and community members to join us for our annual End-of-Year Party and Commencement Celebration—a meaningful weekend of reflection, celebration, and calling as we honor our graduating seniors and celebrate the advancement of learners across all Studios. All Forest families and friends are invited to attend. Featured speakers include…
Commencement Weekend marks not only the graduation of our seniors, but also the growth, courage, and hard work of heroes across The Forest School and The Forest School Online. It is a time to pause, give thanks, celebrate milestones, and send our graduates forward with wisdom, encouragement, and a charge to lead well.
Event details below…
Baccalaureate Service
Friday, May 15
5:00–6:00 PM
Optional for families and guests
Our Baccalaureate Service will be a reflective and meaningful time set apart to honor our graduates, offer encouragement, and mark this important transition with gratitude and purpose.
This optional gathering gives families and guests an opportunity to pause before Commencement, reflect on the journey of our seniors, and celebrate this milestone in a more intimate and reflective setting.
End-of-Year Party and Commencement Ceremony
Saturday, May 16, 2026
10:00 AM
The Forest School: An Acton Academy Campus
Our Graduation and Advancement Ceremony will bring together in-person and online learners, families, Guides, and community members to celebrate the achievements of our heroes. During this special gathering, we will honor our graduating seniors and recognize learners advancing across Studios.
Commencement is more than a ceremony. It is a moment of reflection, celebration, and calling. It marks the end of one chapter and the beginning of another, as learners step forward with the habits, skills, courage, and sense of purpose they have built over many years.
Graduation Speakers
We are proud to welcome an inspiring group of graduation speakers this year, including Senator Brian Strickland, Zac Brown, Dan Watson, Guides Ben and Lana, and seniors Evie Lee and Taina MacDonald.
Together, these speakers represent creativity, leadership, service, mentorship, courage, and the power of using one’s gifts to make a difference. Their words will help honor our graduates, celebrate the Forest journey, and send our seniors into their next chapter with encouragement and purpose.
Zac Brown
Zac Brown is the frontman of the Zac Brown Band, a Grammy Award-winning country music group based in Atlanta, Georgia. Known for its unique blend of country, rock, and folk, the band has released platinum albums, earned chart-topping hits, and built a reputation for high-energy performances and meaningful collaborations.
Beyond music, Zac is deeply committed to service and community. He founded Camp Southern Ground, a 450-acre nonprofit camp in Fayetteville, Georgia, where children of all abilities, including those with autism and learning differences, come together for life-changing summer experiences. The camp also provides year-round programs for veterans and active-duty military families, helping them find support, healing, and community.
Zac’s work reflects a deep belief in growing unique gifts, healthy bodies, and good communities. We are honored that he will help encourage and send forward our graduates during this important milestone.
Senator Brian Strickland
Senator Brian Strickland has served in the Georgia State Senate since 2018 and currently represents Senate District 42. Before joining the Senate, he served in the Georgia House of Representatives, bringing years of public service, legal experience, and civic leadership to his work on behalf of Georgia families and communities.
Senator Strickland’s presence offers our graduates a meaningful opportunity to hear from a leader whose life and work reflect the importance of service, responsibility, and community impact. His message will remind learners that leadership is not only about achievement. It is about using one’s gifts to serve others and contribute to something larger than oneself.
Dan Watson
Dan Watson serves as the Location Pastor at Passion City Church at Trilith, located in the greater Atlanta area. He and his wife, Jo, are passionate about raising up the next generation of leaders and enjoy traveling the globe inspiring people to live for the glory of God. Married for over 15 years with four beautiful children, Dan is originally from the United Kingdom, where he pastored a thriving ministry before relocating to the United States.
Ben Toler, Guide
Ben Toler has spent over ten years working in educational theater. He holds an undergraduate degree in music and a master’s degree in theater and was part of the inaugural apprentice class at the Aurora Theatre in Lawrenceville, Georgia. After performing professionally throughout the Atlanta area, he turned his focus to teaching theater and music at a small high school conservatory program for homeschool students in Sugar Hill, Georgia, where he eventually became artistic director.
Under his leadership, the program entered the Shuler Awards for the first time in its history and was immediately recognized with a Best Show nomination, along with set design recognition and multiple individual performer wins, holding its own against far larger, better-funded programs across metro Atlanta. That ability to build excellence from the ground up, at any scale, is what makes Ben uniquely equipped to help launch arts education at the Forest School.
Known for his strong rapport with students and his ability to challenge them toward excellence while building confidence, Ben believes great storytelling doesn’t require a massive budget or state-of-the-art facilities. It requires empathy, ingenuity, and persistence, and he is passionate about helping learners embody those values, unlocking confidence and creativity.
Lana Toler, Guide
Lana Toler is relocating to the Fayetteville area from the northeast suburbs of Atlanta after being a certified educator for the past ten years. She has worked with learners from first grade through twelfth grade, but her favorite crew to work with is middle school. When she is not organizing something, you can find her having a raucous dance party/jam session in the living room with her toddlers and husband, writing with Jeni’s Salted Peanut Butter ice cream in hand, or crafting experiences for the people she loves. Her vision is to cultivate curiosity, compassion, competence, and connection among her learners.
Evie Lee, Senior Class of 2026
Evie is a senior who has been attending the Forest School for two years. She is a passionate and creative graduate who is dedicated to her faith, family, and friends. She enjoys reading, writing, and baking and can usually be found on a drive to Chick-fil-A. After graduation, she plans to take a gap year to pursue personal growth and new experiences before continuing toward her future goals. With aspirations to become a nurse, missionary, writer, and entrepreneur, she is excited to use her talents and compassion to make a meaningful impact on the world.
Taina MacDonald, Senior Class of 2026
Taina MacDonald is a graduating senior at Forest School Online and is honored to serve as one of this year’s commencement speakers. She has been actively involved in dance, 4-H, and rodeo, and serves as head of the Forest School Online yearbook, where she has developed strong leadership and communication skills. She is passionate about personal growth, leadership, and community involvement, and plans to attend college to pursue a career in international law. Taina is grateful for the support of her guides, family, and peers who have helped shape her journey.
Join Us
We invite all families, friends, and members of the community to celebrate with us on campus as we honor these incredible milestones. Come witness the future leaders, creators, and innovators stepping forward into their next chapter.