2012 –
13 Graduation Speech
Ladies
and gentleman, this group of graduating seniors has garnered some impressive
numbers collectively. Allow me to
share some statistics about this group:
·
There are 135 graduating seniors this year – 67 males and 68 females.
·
42% of these seniors, or 57 students, were chorus members
·
8 were in the marching band
·
10 were in the concert band
·
15 were involved in the musical
·
35%, or 47 seniors met the criteria to be in the National Honor society
·
Athletics – 58% or 78 seniors involved in sports
o 44 boys and 34 girls
o 1 boy involved in 4 sports
o 6 boys and 3 girls involved
in 3 sports
o 16 boys and 12 girls
involved in 2 sports
o 21 boys and 19 girls
involved in one sport
·
As for post secondary plans:
o 76 seniors, or 56% will
attend a 4 yr college
o 10% will attend a community
college
o 7% a career/technical school
o 7% serving our country in a
branch of the military
o 19% in the workforce
o 1% undecided
·
This exceptional group had 74 students take a total of 415 college
courses and earned 1293 college credits through dual enrollment while a CCHS
student. That deserves a round of
applause!!
·
And finally, this class of 2013 is receiving $845,865 in
scholarships.
Several days ago I had the opportunity and
privilege to meet with about 20% of the seniors to get their perspective on
their years at CCSD. It was great
to hear what they had to say, positive and negative about their district and
high school experience. All those interviewed had plans to prepare for
post-secondary education, the military, trade school or private industry
Some of their positive comments were:
·
Many said the music/arts programs are top
notch
·
Vo-tech is a great opportunity
·
CCSD is friendly and caring. Teachers get to know the students
·
Strong sports programs
·
One student said, “this graduating class
is an exceptional group, everybody is accepting of others, “we have had almost
no fights this year”.
·
The Math and science departments are
awesome
·
Many thought one of the best teachers in
the district was Mr. McCombie.
Comments such as “we are not allowed to slack off in his class”, or “we
know math when we leave his class”, and we learn math without knowing we are
learning math.” Were expressed.
·
The majority of students I spoke with felt
they were all prepared to leave CCSD and enter the next phase of life.
·
The students had a strong sense of pride
and named many noteworthy teachers they felt contributed to their success at
CCSD. Like Mr. Aurandt, who one
student said, “he has a strange way of teaching, but it works”. And Mr. Nik, who one student said “is
not only a great coach and teacher, but also prepares us for life”.
·
One of the best comments was “ Students
feel they can come back or email any teacher in this district to ask for help after
they have graduated.”
Some of the areas we can improve are:
·
Stop letting the MS kids wander in our
building
·
Allowing more fundraising for class field
trips
·
Relaxed cell phone usage policy in school
during study halls or cafeteria
·
Increase existing and new technology
·
Have a dodge ball tournament
·
More chicken nuggets, (to which another
student countered and said the district is under federal mandate on what and
who much is served)
As in years past, I will be meeting with my admin
team over the summer months to take these suggestions of and others to
constantly work toward an improved curriculum and learning environment; many
thanks to those of you who met with me.
Quite a good group of seniors this year.
Since
speeches usually start off with a joke to put the audience in a receptive mood,
I thought I would start off with one.
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A young student reported for a final examination that
consisted of only true/false questions.
The student took a seat in the hall, stared at the test for
five minutes, removed a coin from his pocket and started tossing the coin and
marking the answer sheet. Heads meant true, tails meant false.
The young student finished the exam in 30 minutes, while the
rest of the class was sweating it out.
Suddenly, during the last few minutes, the young student
began desperately throwing the coin and sweating profusely.
The teacher, alarmed, approached the student and asked what
was going on.
"Well, I finished the exam in half an hour," said
the student, "but I thought I ought to recheck my answers."
Many
years ago I would often sit and listen to my parents, grandparents, and great
aunts and uncles talk about their youth and the good times they had: stories of how much coal was needed for
the winter, or who would shovel it into the coal bin, or how they gathered
around the family radio to listen to “The Shadow.” They called these the
"Good Old Days," sometimes with an almost reverent tone in their
voice. Interspersed in these conversations I would hear weird phrases repeated
again and again over the years that sounded absurd to me as a child. What did
they mean, “A silk purse out of a sow’s ear” or “Call a spade a spade”? Now, as
an adult, I realize there is true wisdom in some of the idioms that pepper our
conversation. As it turns out, there are quite a few that are perfect for an
occasion as important as your high school graduation. So bear with me as I share a brief history
lesson on some poignant truisms - pearls of wisdom, you might say.
Here’s one that parents and
grandparents may know: "Born with a silver spoon in your mouth." In “the
good old days,” when a child was christened it was traditional for the
godparents to give a silver spoon as a gift - if they could afford it - to
symbolize the hope that the child would achieve riches in its lifetime. However
a child born in a rich family did not have to wait. He or she had it all from
the start. They were born with “a silver spoon in their mouths.” Whether or not
you were born with one in your mouth, my wish for you is that you will find a
silver spoon of your own. (You don’t have to keep it in your mouth.)
In golf, the short stroke is
the one that sinks the ball into the cup, the final play. This is your short
stroke. Whether you play another round at the college level or move on to a
different game altogether, you are ready. You’re now “down to the short stroke”
of your public education.
After 12 or 13 years, you
are “armed to the teeth” with knowledge and experience. Back in the days of
knights and round tables, men entered battle with every weapon they had because
they knew they couldn’t go back to their camp once the fight had begun; they
were armed to the teeth. As Central Cambria graduates, you are “armed to the
teeth” and ready for the battle called life.
Your parents and your
teachers have nurtured and taught you. They’ve given you “a leg up” as you head
out to what’s next for you. The phrase “leg up” comes from the world of
horseback riding: we often need help getting a leg up and over the horse.
You’ve gotten your leg up and now we all get to stand back and proudly watch
you strike out from here.
Now, though, things may get
a little scary. The ball is in your court. In basketball, this means that it’s
your time to score and get ahead in the game. The same applies to you right
now. You’ve gained the skills, the experiences, and the maturity to strike out
on your own. The ball is in your court.
But don’t be a flash in the
pan. Back in the days of the gold rush, miners used sieve-like pans to sift
dirt away from the gold washing down the river. They were often disappointed to
see a shiny object in the pan that amounted to nothing more than a crystalline
stone or pyrite, fool’s gold. Do great things; be more than a flash in the pan.
Instead, remember that Rome
wasn’t built in a day. This phrase comes from the fact that Rome was in a state
of growth and expansion for 167 years. Patience and perseverance resulted in
one of the greatest civilizations in history. Granted, you don’t have quite
that much time. Nevertheless, the message to you is that you should leave here with
the idea that you will continue to work toward becoming – becoming that
great person you were meant to be.
And here’s the final lesson
in meaningful idioms, my personal favorite: reaching for the brass ring. Brass
isn’t of great value, platinum would be a lot better, right? Well, if you’re a
fan of old-style carousels, or merry-go-rounds, you might know that riders on
the outside row of horses were often given a little challenge. Once the ride
started moving, a metal arm was swung out — on some rides this held a single
brass ring, which riders could try to grab as they passed. Anyone who managed
to retrieve it could redeem it for a free ride. Another system had a dispenser
of many rings, most of which were steel and had no value- but one ring per ride
was the brass one that won the prize.
Several fairground history websites suggest that the game fell out of
favor in this more careful and litigious age because of the number of young
people who hurt themselves reaching for the rings. Grabbing the brass ring,
going for the brass ring or reaching for the brass ring were all
used to refer to the opportunity to win a grand prize. Brass
ring came to have the figurative sense of a prize, in particular one that
was hard to gain.
That, my dear students is
what life is all about – reaching for that brass ring. Very few people want to leave high
school and stop learning, doing, or living life to the fullest. Yes, reaching for that brass ring
can be hard but, if it was easy, everyone would get one. As the poet Robert Frost said “In three words I can sum up everything
I've learned about life: it goes on.” How your life goes after
tonight’s ceremony will depend on the decisions you make as you grow into
adulthood. Every decision any of you
will make has consequences; some good, some not so good. What will define you is how you react
to those consequences. Some of you
will follow a direct path to that brass ring, while some of you will travel a
more scenic route to your brass ring.
The important part of this is not the brass ring itself, but the journey
you take to get it. I guarantee that
twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you
didn't do than by the ones you did do.
So while you sit on stage
reflecting back over the last 12 or 13 years, pause and take time to think
about what the phrase “reaching for the brass ring” will mean to you in the
years to come. It is my sincere hope
that all of you are willing to try for that brass ring.
I wish you all a wonderful
and productive career as you begin the next phase of life’s journey. If you have not done so yet, take time
to thank those responsible for this day: your parents, grandparents, siblings,
aunts, uncles, friends, teachers, administrators, school board members and any
other significant people who had an impact on your educational career.
As we bring this night to a
close, I will leave you with a quote from one of my favorite authors, Ted
Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss; “Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.”
Thank you, good luck – and
break a leg.
