By Chelsea McNerney-Martinez
MONTE VISTA— In a unique ceremony sure to stand out in the hearts and memories of 34 graduates, Sargent High School sent the class of 2018 into the world following their graduation Friday night, May 25.
The graduates entered the gym, surprising the attendees by eliminating the recording of “Pomp and Circumstance” with a brief 30-second portion of a favorite song for each student as they entered the gym, ranging from Michael Jackson, Foghat, Jay Z, Snoop Dog and every genre in between (including one student who elected to keep the traditional “Pomp and Circumstance” entrance).
Principal Ronna Cochran welcomed the attendees to the 100th graduation ceremony at Sargent, “Class of 2018, you are our future. There have never been greater challenges or more opportunities. You will have the chance to make a difference across the globe as you bring solutions to environmental concerns, conservation of resources and huge discoveries in cures for disease and knowledge in our genetic makeup. Congratulations, class of 2018 and remember, graduation is only the beginning, not the end. Good luck!”
Superintendent Greg Slover presented the Sargent School District Teacher of the Year Award to high school social studies teacher John Willis, who also received the Colorado History Teacher of the Year award. Terri Paulson was also recognized for being awarded the Colorado Science Teacher of the Year.
Salutatorian KaDee Crowther began her address with humor, reading the urban dictionary definition of a salutatorian, which reads “The less important of two high school students who have to give a speech on graduation day.” Crowther used the joke to remind her class “no one is more important than the next one of us,” and reminded her class to be lifelong learners in much more than formal education. “What limits our learning is what we believe we already know,” she stated. Crowther encouraged her peers to focus not on knowing more than someone else, as they risk becoming judgmental and instead to focus on “…improving our mindset… be around people who lift up your mindset…We need to learn how to empower others and learn from every person and every moment….” Crowther concluded by thanking the educators who made their graduation possible, her classmates and her family and giving advice to the kindergarten class of 2018 in appreciating the little things.
Valedictorian Jessica Kern gave an address full of appreciation. Kern thanked her parents “…for never telling me my dreams are too big” and all of her classmates’ families for their encouragement, “None of us would be here tonight without your support.” Kern thanked her teachers for pushing and leading her and the class of 2018. She also thanked her friends “…who made high school exponentially better” and wished the Sargent underclassmen the best of luck, jokingly noting the irony of spending “13 years writing our names on paper just to get a piece of paper with your name on it.” Kern concluded by wishing her classmates well in their many varied and international endeavors leaving them with a Macklemore quote, “Make the money; don’t let the money make you. Change the game; don’t let the game change you. I’ll forever remain faithful. All my people stay true.”
Guest speaker Joe Norris began his speech by calling for a moment of silence for the victims of the Santa Fe High School Shooting in Texas, before taking a less somber tone and telling the students “My wish is that something I say will strike a chord” and stay with them as they move on in life. Norris spoke about two topics of relevance, agriculture and football coach Lou Hotz. When speaking about agriculture, Norris stated they faced “a tremendous responsibility” in feeding and clothing a global population expected to double by 2050. Norris encouraged the graduates to lean on the principles of honesty and integrity and remember how complicated and difficult farming can be and to keep in mind crops are measured by yield “but don’t ever sacrifice quality for quantity.”
Norris then spoke about the career of college and NFL coach Lou Holtz, noting what stood out about him, even with his accolades, including being a nine-time coach of the year, was how well respected he was by players. The players believed in him as a coach because he led by example and was always prepared. Norris encouraged the graduates to similarly “believe in your heart that failure is not an option.”
Norris concluded by stating, “It’s ok to have an opinion and give your opinion but disagree respectfully” and “be very slow to pass judgment and very fast to pass praise.” Norris quoted Tim McGraw at the end of each point, “Always be humble and kind.”
Trevor Milne and Allison Harrison read about the tradition of passing the spade, which began in 1932. From 1932-1999 the graduating class has selected juniors to pass the wooden spade onto, a symbol of the ideals and traditions of the school. Since 2000 the spade has been granite but only finished on one side, to represent the first phase of life that students have polished with the other three sides yet to come. Caleb Hsu and Elora Smith were selected as the recipients of the spade to represent the class of 2019. Milne and Harrison also thanked Transportation Director Sue Plane for her work and wished her the best in retirement.
Following the flower ceremony, handing out Gerber Daisies to family members who the students wished to thank for their contribution to their education, guidance and love, the school board and administration conferred diplomas to the students. Harlee Pepper then led the class in the turning of the tassels. The Sargent class of 2018 celebrated with confetti poppers and returned to their joyful family members.