Dear Class of 2020,
Thank you for finishing strong.
Today is your last day of high school. We should all be spending the day scrubbing every surface at Chinquapin, up to our elbows in the dust of the school year and loving our campus until the very last bell. We should be hugging and crying and cheering as you cross the stage tomorrow. This is not the ending any of us imagined for your high school career, and it is certainly not the way we planned to end our two year seminar journey together.
Whenever I shared my dad's simple wisdom, that good students start semesters strong while great students dig deep and finish strong, I had no idea what tremendous dedication and commitment it would take for you to finish this year strong. It doesn't surprise me that you did though. I have had seven other quarters to get to know you, and I've seen you overcome so many other challenges that I knew you had the grace and persistence to complete your senior year with excellence.
Two years ago, as we embarked on the research journey of junior seminar, you immediately impressed me with your commitment to excellence. I remember very clearly that Keiddrick told me, in no uncertain terms, exactly what his academic goals were and what accountability I could provide to help him reach those goals. Early on, Jacob scheduled time to really think deeply about his research topic to ensure that it had a strong focus. You dove into your studies, you took risks in calling professors for interviews about your topics, and you wrote lots of notecards. So many notecards. Quick shoutout to Navejar for being right about digital notecards. Your insistence that I reconsider my old-fashioned index card approach has made me a better teacher of 21st century research skills. Future classes are indebted to you. Eventually, you all transformed those notes into thoughtful papers. While some of you might have written the final drafts well past lights out on the floor of the bathroom, you emerged from the experience confident and capable researchers.
Before I knew it, you were diving into three week mini-projects. In just a short time, you discovered so much and did so much. Luis wrote and memorized a poem, Keiddrick and Alan hosted the first of their many classes, and Isaac and Ricardo wrote a song. At your junior seminar presentations, you shared your hard work and your future goals with many outside guests, and you built partnerships that lasted throughout your senior year. As people gave you business cards and encouraged you to stay in touch, you were so excited about the possibilities created by your new networking skills.
After a summer of refining your thinking and your skillsets, you came back ready to get to work. For example, Erika, who invested her summer in a film program that strengthened her understanding of how to write, direct, produce, and edit films, returned with an even deeper conviction about her purpose and vision as a storyteller. Ashley also rejoined us, using her semester exchange experience to significantly refine her book proposal.
Over the next eight months, your progress notes tell the story of your ups and downs on the road to your major accomplishments. Daniela hosted two major stress relief events, Judith created events promoting positive mental health care, Kihana coordinated a debate watching experience, and Ethan built a guitar. Some people had to pivot their projects, like Cristina whose work on the school aquarium ended when it was sold and Tamara who wanted to increase her exploration of the medical field.
Ultimately your projects have left a mark. Some people created lasting impacts at Chinquapin like the work that Sebastian and Carlos did on the pond. Many other projects produced artistic work that reached a significant audience. You can find Honey Mustard's album on iTunes and see Crystal's work in her virtual art gallery. Your work challenges stereotypes, builds understanding, promotes awareness and strives to serve. I couldn't be more proud.
When I reflect on the end of the year, your senior presentations are the epitome of finishing strong. I'll admit, I thought that trying to do seminar presentations online was going to completely kill the experience. I thought there was no way that you, even giving it 100%, could make the format interesting, engaging, and reflective.
I was wrong. So wrong. I would close my laptop after the daily afternoon presentation just in awe of your accomplishments. I was struck over and over by how much you had truly achieved in these last two years. Sometimes, behind my muted mic and profile picture, I was laughing so hard at the memories of your crazy adventures, and sometimes I teared up with pride at the final product you delivered knowing how much effort it took to create it. You impressed me over and over again with how your knowledge about your topics have grown, how you've changed as a people, and how you've become leaders through your work. Also, shout out to you for becoming incredibly competent graphic designers and for doing the work to prep really polished and thoughtful presentations that sparked incredibly rich Q&A sessions.
So thank you Class of 2020. Thanks for inviting me into the story of your projects. Thank you for filling our classes with rich conversations, good questions, and lots of laughs. Thank you for pushing yourselves to finish strong.
We are ending this journey in a time of great uncertainty. You're heading off from here on a new journey as college students. However, just because this junior/senior seminar experience is finished, the experience isn't completely over. It is now a memory that you can carry with you even if you don't hold on to your contrail notecards like I did. I am reminded of a few lines from "Graduation" by Vitamin C that say "As we go on/ We remember/all the times we/had together." I know I'll be thinking of you and our time together, and I hope you'll be thinking of it too, maybe when you're writing that first 10 page college paper or when you look up and see a contrail in the sky.
You have learned all you can from this experience, now go out and serve the world! It desperately needs leaders like you.
Much love,
Sarah
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