Valedictorian Speeches at 2008 Graduation Ceremonies
June 3, 2008 - Graduation is the time when students walk across a stage to be congratulated by their principal and to be presented with a diploma that signifies they have successfully completed four years of high school study. During this recognition of each individuals achievement, time is set aside for several students to express the excitement of the moment, to remember the hard work of their years in school and to look forward to the future. WCPSS valedictorians were invited to submit their comments and several agreed to share what they had to say.
Kyle Goodman - Athens Drive High School
This year at Spring Break, my family and I were fortunate enough to be in Orlando at the same time as the Athens Drive Symphonic Band. They performed at Disney World and we were able to see them on stage at Epcot. They were AWESOME!
While in Orlando, the band got to spend some time at Universal’s Islands of Adventure and I joined them. My friends and I wandered throughout the park—we enjoyed the many attractions, and rode several of the roller coasters including the Incredible Hulk and the Dueling Dragons. (The extra time we waited to ride in the front row was SO worth it!) Perseverance certainly pays off—whether it is standing in line at an amusement park or studying hard in school.
On the other side of the park, my parents took my little sister to Dr. Seuss Landing. “Oh, the places you’ll go” with a 3-year-old! Of course, no visit to a park is complete without a souvenir of some sort and my Mom picked up this T-shirt for me. For those of you who might not be able to see it in the back, it bears the “THING One” emblem from the popular The Cat in the Hat series. Now this shirt works on two levels—I am the eldest sibling AND your Valedictorian today.
This shirt actually became the inspiration for my speech. Don’t worry; I didn’t attempt to match Dr. Seuss’ wisdom with rhymes. Well, perhaps the clever twists and turns in his tales exceed the number of twists on the Dueling Dragons . . . although it is a close call. But I am sure not too many of you know that Theodore Geisel, penning under the name of Dr. Seuss, wrote The Cat in the Hat and the numerous books that followed to inspire children to read. They are corny, but they work, and all of us in this room are fortunate to have received a good education—to be able to read—and to make it to this point in our lives. Fewer than 8 of 10 Americans actually graduate from high school. In North Carolina, as a whole, the high school drop out rate is slightly greater than 30 percent. Scary, huh? Being able to read and graduating from high school is only the start, and as Dr. Seuss says, “The more that you read, the more THINGS you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
So in closing, I’d like to leave you with these words of wisdom:
Remember that some THINGS surpass the test of time such as Confucius’ saying, “Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.”
Remember, it truly is the little THINGS in life that matter.
And as you go out into the future—to college or the working world, keep this in mind:
Stand for someTHING.
Want for noTHING.
Don’t let anyTHING get you down.
And may everyTHING you hope for, come true!
Like Seuss says, “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.” So choose wisely!
So, thank you teachers and administrators, family and friends. You have made the last four years a fun and rewarding experience.
Congratulations Class of 2008!!! We did it! “Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So...get on your way.”
Timothy Ryan Palpant - Leesville Road High School
Someone made the false assumption that being valedictorian meant I had something special to say. But unlike the magic computations of student services which put me here, I know of no magic formula for success, no golden ticket for life, no universal gem of wisdom to present.
For the last four years, I never really made it to that stage where one aims for success: I spent it trying to figure out what I wanted to succeed in. And, thankfully, Leesville is a school abundant with opportunities to explore: student government, athletics, clubs, service opportunities, theater, visual and performing arts. Oh, yeah, and I guess academics too. High school is the training ground where we are free to explore our interests and develop our talents.
Too often we search for one thing—one discipline, one activity—in which we can excel, and we restrict ourselves to doing only that one thing. We search for our label: whether it be “star athlete,” “math whiz,” “techie,” or “biology kid.”
I’m still not sure what my one thing is, but sometimes experimentation is a necessary prerequisite. Don’t be too hasty to narrowly define yourself and then “succeed” in that one way. Never pass up an opportunity to broaden your horizons; don’t be afraid to try new things.
I think the fear of failure pressures us to be more conservative. Risking our hand at new ventures means risking failure. That’s scary. Freshman year, I tried to play JV football. That was scary. This last semester, I did my best to learn to paint…and let’s just say I’m still better at math. But I’m glad I tried. I love these memories. And while I know I may never be heralded for my athletic ability or artistic prowess, I think the last four years of experiences have enriched who I am.
Don’t let a fear of the unknown—the things that are different, the things that stretch you, the things you might not be good at—turn you into a “cold and timid soul,” afraid to try. Don’t worry if the future is not clear, if you’re not sure what you want to major in, where you want to work, who your peers will be, what activities you want to do.
Life is not a printed Mapquest itinerary to be followed. I don’t think there is a universal mantra by which you can identify and reach your dreams, and I don’t think there is a magic formula to find the answer. Life is about more than just finding your label and finding “success,” whatever that means.
So what is your label? I challenge you to be more. I challenge you to do more than just what’s expected of you. I challenge you to reach out. I challenge you to taste everything.
Today, we try on a new name: “graduate.” It even comes with a special cap. And I think it implies something more: life after high-school, work, college, military service; independence and responsibility. A new frontier which confronts us with a new set of opportunities and experiences.
As you enter post-high-school life, continue to look for opportunities to stretch yourself and fully experience all that life has to offer. Seize them. Take every chance you get. Search for who you are—all of it—and never limit yourself to any one thing, to any one label.
Emma Fauser - Millbrook High School
Welcome to the graduation of the best class ever, the class of ‘08. This is no ordinary class, but a class like no other. We have conquered ourselves and the many obstacles that have come before us. As Edmund Hillary once said “It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves”. This class has gone beyond all expectations and made good use of every opportunity given it. Not every class can win everything, including spirit hall and powder-puff, but we managed to. Not every class can have such an impact on school spirit and morale, but we did by changing the meaning of a maniac. And not every class can be so close and full of caring shown by the genesis of Band Together and Darfur events, but we are. I feel blessed and honored to be a part of the class of ‘08 because I know how capable we are and I know we will make a difference as we go our separate ways.
There is much to be said about school, considering the fact that it takes up so much of our lives, but now that it is coming to an end I know everything was worth it. Waking up at the break of dawn is nothing compared to the friends I’ve made and the memories I’ve created. I’ll never forget the feeling when I saw D.C for the first time with my classmates or the feelings evoked when I realized graduation was just around the corner sometime in March. We will never forget the endless nights spent on group projects and papers, decorating for dances, attending football games, making shirts for spirit week, and dancing at prom. We had no idea as freshman that healthful living, was, in fact, not the hardest class we would take in high school. We also had no idea that we would not need to know to exact height, diameter, and radius of a ping pong net in inches and centimeters. Without classes like PE and freshman seminar though, who knows who we would be today.
But who knows who we will be tomorrow? The mysterious nature of the future is something all of us have in common. We do not know where or what our lives will bring us, but I hope we all follow our hearts and do what we love. I am certain that we are all capable of something extraordinary, and I know this by looking back at our accomplishments. This class’s desire to help others as well as our intense spirit enables me to be confident that we will continue to have a positive influence. As freshmen at Millbrook, we were hesitant, but as the years progressed, we took risks and changed this school into something almost unrecognizable. I hope as we leave Millbrook, we will have the same impact wherever we go. We are more powerful than we realize. Emerson once wrote “What lies behind us or in front of us is nothing compared to what lies within us.” As long as we do not forget this, we will change the world as we know it.
-wcpss-