Confetti, cheers and celebration were in the air on the Herricks High School football field at Thursday evening’s commencement ceremony.
Despite the omnipresent threat of rain throughout the evening, the 362 high school graduates threw their caps in the air with their diplomas in hand, exclaiming excitedly as their family and friends shot off mini confetti cannons, blew into noise makers and held up oversized posters of the graduates’ faces from the bleachers.
“We’re here today to celebrate our seniors,” said Herricks Superintendent Tony Sinanis. “It has truly been an honor to witness your growth and learning over the past three years, whether it was seeing you in the classroom, watching you perform on stage, walking through the hallways or watching you compete on the athletic field.”
The school’s valedictorian, salutatorian, student speakers, and administrators used their time at the podium to praise the school’s exceptional community spirit and diversity while emphasizing the importance of qualities that fall outside of what grades can measure.
Salutatorian Sharath Venkatesan centered his humorous and moving speech on his dreams of attending an Ivy League school, which were crushed when he was rejected from each one he applied to.
“Here’s what I’ve learned,” Venkatesan said about bouncing back from the setback. “The decisions of others don’t define us, but the decisions that we make do.”
“We are not just our college logo. We are not our GPA. We are not the number of clubs we join, especially if we join them for the free snacks,” Venkatesan said. “What we are are the late-night FaceTime calls that helped somebody finish an assignment. We’re the joke that made the class laugh when everything felt heavy. We’re the quiet resilience it took to show up day after day when no one was clapping for us just yet.”
The school’s guest speaker, retiring Herricks assistant principal Andrew Frisone, delivered the final address to the graduates, calling himself incredibly lucky to have had the opportunity to work with the district’s students for 24 years and describing the school community as truly one of a kind and full of something he called “Herricks Moments.”
As an example, he spoke about watching a group of students walk from the football field through the treeline into someone’s house behind the school after a homecoming game, a situation he was initially concerned about.
When he walked over to inquire about what they were doing, a student took him into their home, introduced him to his father, and offered him McDonald’s and home cooking from the “Food Party” they were holding—the reason why students were walking into the home.
“That’s a Herricks Moment, right there, “It’s when one kid from one culture brings together classmates from so many other cultures to share food, laughter and friendship, not because someone told them to, but because it’s second nature,” Frisone said. “Thank you for letting me be a guest in your lives.”
Sinanis’ address to the group of graduates involved cautioning them against the convenience of artificial intelligence and imploring them to bring their personal brand of intelligence, care, and talents to the world they were about to enter.
“As I stand before you today, I can’t help but think about the state of our world today and our over-reliance on technology,” Sinanis said. “There is stuff that you can quickly learn about by going on Google or ChatGPT, but not everything can be answered with a quick Google search. Some of life’s most important lessons cannot be learned online.”
“You can’t go to Google to find out what it means to be a compassionate listener or a confident speaker or an empathetic friend. Google or ChatGPT is not going to prepare you to be successful in life,” he continued. “Can it help you study for that biology test freshman year? Sure. But can it help you build relationships with your roommates or your professors? No. Can it help you put together your resume for a job application? Of course. But can it help you secure that first job? No.”
“Life is about leaning into curiosity, critical thinking and relationships. It’s about being present and engaged. It’s about being aware of your surroundings and figuring out what you can contribute to the world around you,” Sinanis told the graduates. “As you leave Herricks High School, remember to look beyond Google and ChatGPT. Your legacy in this lifetime will come from being present and engaged and connected to the people around you.”
Read more graduation coverage: The Wheatley School holds 68th commencement ceremony.
