Brilliant sunshine greeted the 659 graduates of McCaskey’s class of 2023 when it processed into Clipper Magazine Stadium for the school’s 89th commencement. But a classmate said it was the graduates who light up the community.
“You have a positive legacy that will inspire many and always be remembered,” Jaden Kennett told his fellow graduates in a speech reflecting on the class’s “achievement, brilliance and excellence.”
“The choice to continue to mature, to become independent, to continue with your learning and growing must be yours.”
Two other graduate speakers, Andrew Sheetz and Rose Carlson, reflected on the impact of important relationships in their high school lives. Sheetz, whose mother died due to COVID-19 in September of his junior year, talked about the impact of his JOTC mentor, Sgt. John Beaver, among others.
“[Sgt. Beaver] was the first person who told me I was going to be something, that I was worth something, that I could be great, and I believed him,” Sheetz said. “My fellow graduates, we are stronger together here today. We achieved our goals and we will achieve our next goals.”
Carlson, a student journalist with the WMCC Tornado Alert Morning Show and the Vidette newspaper, encouraged her classmates to ask questions and embrace the uncertainty of not knowing the answers.
“Questions can be scary. They open up possibilities that we may not even be ready to consider, whether that’s within the scope of our own social lives, careers, or education, or in the context of an entire business, government, or society,” she said.
One of the most important questions Carlson faced during her time in high school, she said, came during her freshman year: A fellow freshman asked if they had a history class together, and the two became close friends.
“When Stephanie asked me her question on the D-floor hallway in 9th grade, she helped me to transcend my insecurities and doubts to make room for connection,” she said.
During the ceremony, the school inducted Angelica Mendoza as the 49th member of the McCaskey Hall of Honor, the highest award a graduating senior receives. Mendoza was captain of the color guard and field hockey teams and involved in music and performing arts.
Nearly half of the Class of 2023 plans to attend college in the fall, attending schools such as Howard University, Princeton University, Bucknell University, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology, Millersville University and Lincoln University. Eleven grads are joining the U.S. military, including Mali Richardson, who earned a $400,000 scholarship to attend the United States Coast Guard Academy.
A large number of students, nearly one in three, plans to enter the workforce, in careers ranging from social services to construction.
The program concluded with a brief fireworks display as graduates tossed their caps in the air.