Saturday, May 24, 2014

The Class of 2014 Graduates

 Ely Memorial High School Seniors graduated this evening, with Akira taking part in the ceremonies and receiving a Certificate of Attendance to commemorate his year in Ely.
Families and friends attended the event, with one graduate's brother flying in from Greece to celebrate this milestone.
As the audience waited for the start of the program, they were treated to a slide show featuring photos of each class member - both a baby picture and one from this year.  Here is the slide that was shown for Akira.

The ceremony began with a procession of the seniors, walking in to the music of  Elgar's "Pomp and Circumstance" and robed in caps and gowns.  Once they were seated on the stage, a favorite teacher addressed the class, two of the seniors reminded their classmates of times they had shared through the years, and then diplomas were awarded.
Each student came down and was introduced by Principal Bettin before walking across the stage to be congratulated by Superintendent Leitgeb and then School Board Chairman Marston handed them their diploma.
They next returned to their place on stage to wait for the rest of the class to receive their diplomas. Once everyone was back in their places, Principal Bettin gave the signal for the entire class to flip the tassels hanging from their mortarboards.  Moving the tassel to the right side of the head indicates they have completed this stage of their education.
And then it was time to leave the auditorium and gather on the front lawn to congratulate the new graduates.  Here you can see Akira with his certificate.


Congratulations, Akira and all the new Ely Memorial graduates!!!