As the end of the year is quickly approaching, preparations for the senior class’s graduation ceremony are beginning to be made. Taking place at 12:30 pm on June 6th at the Family Arena, the graduation ceremony will include the presentation of diplomas to the newly graduated students and speeches given by the Grad Marshall and select student speakers.
While two students traditionally give a speech at the ceremony, only the Senior Class President is guaranteed one. For the remaining spot, careful consideration is given to possible candidates that choose to audition for the role.
Those interested in the role must sign up ahead of time and are given an allotted time to present their speech. They will then be judged by a panel of administrators, administrative assistants, the senior sponsor, and others.
“We usually have slips of paper with a place for us to write our notes about how the speech is going,” panel member Jennifer Oncken said. “After everybody has given their speeches, the panel discusses everything from the subject matter and the cadence, to how inclusive it is to the entire student body.”
Inclusivity seems to be a point that the panel prioritizes when judging the content of a speech.
“We are looking to see if it includes students who might be going to trade school, out into the workforce, or into the military,” Oncken said. “Because as a speaker, you want to be addressing the whole group, every student within the student body. A speech could be really well written, but if it’s only geared towards a small group of people, or if it’s excluding other groups, then it’s not the right speech.”
The number of students who choose to audition varies per year depending on the senior class. Typically, four or five students audition, but some years, this number can extend to around 10. For this school year, several hopefuls are eager to audition. One among these hopefuls is senior Kimora Jordan.
“I want to speak at graduation because I think I’m generally just a person whose nature is very motivating,” Jordan said. “I’d love to be the one to tell the class that while they have so much more to go through, they can get through it, and that their purpose in life might be greater than what they believe it is.”
Jordan seems to agree that inclusivity and proper representation for the senior class are incredibly important criteria when it comes to selecting a senior to speak at graduation.
“I feel like I’m very relatable to the whole class,” Jordan said. “I’d want to make a speech that can be universally applicable, something that people can relate to no matter where they end up after graduation. I want to make people understand that throughout the failure, hardships, challenges that life can have, you can always succeed if you believe in yourself. That’s the key thing.”
For Jordan, her desire for this position runs deeper than many may realize.
“Last year, when I didn’t get the position of Class President, it fazed me a bit,” Jordan said. “I had such great intentions for what could come and for all that I could accomplish. So being able to motivate the senior class is something that I’ve really been wanting to do for a while. There’s so many lessons that I’ve been gathering all throughout high school, and I’d love to be able to share them with the senior class.”
For other seniors looking forward to having a chance to speak at graduation, auditions will be held after school at 2:30 p.m. on April 14, in Room 1090.
