NIS has an all-school assembly at the beginning of the year but does not place as high a level of importance on opening ceremonies or regularly meeting as a whole school as, for example, the Japanese school system does. Each division will host separate gatherings and assemblies to discuss issues, present ideas, and make announcements, but these are generally tied to the curriculum and not celebratory in nature. In recent years, we have held assemblies to recognize the completion of elementary school and middle school, but these events do not involve the entire school community. We do, however, believe that graduation from high school is an important event that signifies not only the time and effort put into completing all of the requirements for graduation but also the passing from adolescence to adulthood and celebrate this achievement at our "Commencement Exercises" held at the end of the school year for the senior class.