On Track Academy 2021 Graduation

[Music] [Music] as soon as [Music] [Music] i got it [Music] foreign [Music] uh [Music] hmm [Music] hmm so [Music] so [Music] [Music] hmm [Music] [Music] this [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] you [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] let's [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] okay [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] uh [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] so [Music] hmm [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] oh my god [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] so [Music] so [Music] welcome on track academy [Applause] [Music] staff so [Music] [Applause] [Music] what an undeniably extraordinary and special celebration tonight is will soon see the on track academy graduating class of 2021 [Applause] when they walk down the walkway to their honored seats on the graduation stage i'd like you to please stand and honor them and remain standing for the national anthem please stand here they come [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] is [Applause] [Music] standing on the line [Music] [Music] them [Music] and i always [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh [Applause] [Music] [Music] all the grass was greener cause i had a dream that someday [Applause] [Applause] away [Music] [Applause] [Music] had a away [Music] trees [Music] my dreams [Music] i have a dream [Music] is [Music] please join me in experiencing and enjoying the national anthem sung by our graduating senior jamison elton [Applause] oh say can you see by the dawn's light what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming who's brought stripes and bright stars through the peripheral spites or the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming and the rockets red glare the bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there oh say does that star spangled bender yes [Music] [Music] and the home of the [Music] prayers [Applause] please be seated welcome on track academy all of our family friends and all of you who have supported these students for the past 13 years in their educational journey we're going to begin our celebration in an offering of land acknowledgement we acknowledge that we are on the unseated land of the spokane people and that these lands were once the major trading center for the spokanes as they shared this place and welcomed other area tribes through their relations history trade and ceremony we also want to acknowledge that the land holds the spirit of this place through its knowledge culture and all the original peoples since time immemorial as we take a moment to consider the impacts of colonization we may also acknowledge the strengths and resilience of the spokanes and their relatives as we work together making decisions that benefit all may we do so as one heart one mind and one spirit we're grateful to be on the shared lands of the spokane people and ask for the support of their ancestors and all relations we ask that you recognize these injustices that forever change the lives of the spokane people and all their relatives we agree to work together to stop all acts of continued injustices towards native americans and all our relatives it's time for reconciliation we must act upon the truths and take actions that will create restorative justice for all people on track academy families the year-round support you give in all forms is deeply recognized and appreciated from our students and staff and from myself personally it's hard to find the words to express our gratitude your support is changing lives and the lives of generations to come and the unsung heroes on the front lines are your students teachers and our support staff [Applause] we have several of our staff graduating this year as well heidi rieber eric maggie mrs peggy trout and my boss our school director who's given so much support over the years gwen harris will you staff raise your hand so we can give you a round of applause thank you and now our superintendent dr adam swiniard will share a few words good afternoon graduates staff parents families we are so proud of what you have accomplished and i hope that as you sit here this afternoon you can take in the full reality of what all your hard work and perseverance has brought you to and to our staff the on track academy thank you so much for loving these students and caring for them and walking with them every step of the way helping them to see what they are capable of and to our families parents friends neighbors you've walked along your student throughout their educational journey we're so grateful for your partnership for your feedback for your grace and for sharing your student with us the last year it's beyond what we ever thought possible it's been fraught with challenges and hardship it's brought us to this space that's so unique but one of the things that this last year has taught us is that in every moment there's an opportunity and every moment there's an opportunity for a better tomorrow this year has taught us that and as you head down the next road you will find success and you will find joy and you will find happiness you will also find challenges you will find sorrow and you will make mistakes but in each of those moments whether they're good or they're bad whether they bring joy or whether they bring hurt in each one of those moments there's an opportunity for you to make tomorrow better so lean in invest in others invest in relationships invest in yourself give grace give compassion think about the greater good if you do those things if you capture those moments if you capture those opportunities the hope that you will provide to the future cannot be extinguished because hope drives us it fuels us and hope doesn't just appear hope is something you create so take those moments create hope we are so proud of you we're excited for what you're going to accomplish for yourselves for our community and for those you love congratulations again class of 2021 [Applause] thank you dr swenyard our focus at ontrack academy is our students they're at the center of all that we do hearing from our students them sharing their voice and their ideas keeps us focused on what's important several of our soon-to-be graduates will share a message representing their peers first i would like to introduce israel clay brooks hi i'm israel um i just want to say shout out to my dad uh i love you the other day i admitted to my dad that in middle school i faked being sick all the time i didn't want to go to school because of social anxiety low confidence depression and bullies sorry dad i never fit in at any place i ever went to but that changed when i found my place a sophomore year i found on track i left a school where i felt like a number just another face to be forgotten that's not the case at on track here i found teachers that teach for the reason of teaching they don't do it for a paycheck they didn't do it for the societal standpoint when i needed help my teachers would stay late they would call me in the morning making sure i was up and ready for school and on my way when i needed a food handler's card my teachers paid for it they helped me get my first job with their help i got into both the colleges i applied [Applause] for ontrack has taught me how to live in the real world i found lifelong mentors that care about me they would drop anything at a moment's notice to help me with any problem i'll be having i would like to say thank you lisa you're the best principal i have ever had and thank you on track when we needed you you were there for us thank you our second student speaker emma lifer [Applause] thank you hi i'm emma i would like to start out today by first saying thank you thank you to my teachers my principals and the staff and students of ontrack academy i would not be walking the stage and getting my diploma today if it wasn't for each one of you on track saved my education my freshman year i was 14 years old ready to give up and drop out i struggled severely throughout my whole school career due to my dyslexia the basic school system made me feel so behind so left out and completely defeated but on track changed my whole perspective on education i went from being the student who never spoke and was terrified to be called on to the student who shot her hand up so excited to take part in discussions [Applause] before i never felt like i was enough that i was always going to be a below average student but because of amazing people out on track i was shown that there was no such thing as a dumb kid just someone who needed a new way of learning [Applause] i learned more in my first semester on track than i had in years and was taught more than just your basic english math science and history i learned that trust and forgiveness and healing yourself was very important in school setting as well and my teachers made sure my well-being was put first before my grades my sophomore year my dad had taken a really bad fall and broke his hip my family needed extra help and they prioritized my family's stability my mental stability and just my overall emotional well-being before pressing any issues of how much school i missed or how behind i was and when i was fully back in school they gave me their time attention and so much effort to help me get back caught up quickly so i never felt behind in the first place on track helped me through my hardships with life household struggles and just my mental health in general i am so appreciative to this school because it helped me grow into the person that i never thought i could become this school gave me much more than just schooling i gained confidence found who i wanted to be and gained a huge family as well so thank you thank you for showing me i can be much more than i ever imagined thank you for pushing me to see my own worth this high school experience has been one hell of a ride and i couldn't have done it if it wasn't for on track i'm so appreciative to have the chance to become the person i was meant to be thank you [Applause] well before we give out some well-earned diplomas i'd like to brag a little bit of the 13 three sorry 312 seniors on our roster every single one is graduating this year [Applause] our students are prepared for their future they garnered four million dollars in scholarships and aid they are attending four-year university two-year community college trade school apprenticeships join the military they will be traveling the world and in this community not only creating what's next but making a difference and being the servants that they are [Music] [Applause] so to present these well-earned diplomas please welcome from on track academy casey abbott chris burke our superintendent dr adam swiniard and school board president gerald haynes this is the moment we've been waiting for i appreciate if you could hold your applause so that each student's name can be heard i'm not sure if you can do it we'll roll with whatever but now our students are going to come on up and get these diplomas ready i'm thinking oh man i've waited for two years jamilah alabalushi hayden anderson elijah anderson walters truman andrews skyler antolin anna archibald [Applause] jason baker isaiah's baker beeman hannah bartholomeus arredondo austin bachetta tyler baseetta good [Music] oh jordan bowerly ben batista [Music] eugene baxter haley bear ewan beccarini eli barons [Music] isabella bender bree bentenhausen olivia baroody hunter bunzie [Applause] keandre bracey riley bracey elizabeth angelina britton [Music] page bunch [Music] malachi burton naomi butler [Music] brooklyn camarda tamiya campbell [Music] ellie carroll andrea clayson jason [Music] joseph chase cecilia chavis [Applause] taylor childers daniel childress [Music] annabelle church so um maeve churchill israel clay brooks [Music] tatiana clough nicholas camelo [Applause] saxon comer jimmy condon christian corey chloe cosgrove bailey kostich kasia costan trevor coulter [Applause] [Music] jillian cornea alexis coyle kyle cranford [Music] serenity dalzeel [Music] anna davis anna davis anna daley [Music] kiera delay kayla depnur [Music] ethan derrick [Music] gabriel dewey [Music] jason diaz jr emma dravland dubois [Music] [Applause] [Music] zoe duncan cleo duty [Music] audrey eby jamison elton alyssa engen oh god west [Music] taylor feldman christopher fields gabby phoebes willow fitzsimmons xander flick nathan flynn adam flores [Music] adrian francis [Music] scarlett gomez eden garcia mackenzie gardner [Music] tykis garrett [Music] isabelle garrett morgan gaskins micah guinta nathan guest hoon [Applause] caleb gonzalez chanel gosset [Applause] [Music] shayla gray essence griffey william griffith juliana gutierrez [Applause] [Music] and east hammons [Music] kirsten hanson caroline harmon anna harper abby hastings palacios alicia hellman [Music] gabrielle hensley david hester marissa hixson christine ho jonathan holland back simon horkey everett hosking rosalind hauser d howard bailey hoy caden humberd caleb hummel elizabeth ingram gage jackson julian jacobson alexander jefford tayana jenkins elena jensen albious jessen caitlyn johnson cooper johnson [Music] kyler johnson grace johnson hughes tristan katriska grant keener [Music] liam kelly elwyn kennedy mariah kennedy [Music] connor kinsvogel owen kintner [Applause] [Music] shyla klein joshua clayman nathan knowlton [Music] michelle coston [Music] levi vetten jamal lamar william la hassandeshi jaden lorac bonnie larson noah lee [Music] emery lifer malachi linus cody letts khalil lockhart alexander lucero xavier lucero [Music] lansin malachi lyndon malone ashley martello [Music] [Applause] [Music] hey morgan mcallister [Music] connor mccormack isaac mcgoldrick [Applause] kieran mckee dante mckizzy kyla miller james montano rapier [Music] carmela moore megan morrow [Music] cayenne moses cameron murphy brogan murray elizabeth myers aaliyah naomi perry [Music] neal anna ray nelson [Music] ethan nelson riley nyberg [Music] josh opp [Music] dominic overman [Music] all of us are owning this day devin palmer [Music] edwin pavlenko cassandra pelly danae pennington [Music] kaden pettin kenny phelps alexis porath [Music] will puckett adrian pullman [Music] tyrese rainwater [Applause] bella ramirez liar ray on aaliyah red fox [Applause] hayden reed [Applause] [Music] joseph reinemann john rhodes braden rice chester rich bella richards fatima richardson katie robidu [Music] malia rogers [Applause] [Music] [Music] hey ray roiger hayley roland [Music] lillian rosengren isaac sanchez karma sanchez [Music] emma sanders isabella sankari kachechi joyce sardina [Music] abigail saunders cody schrader ariah schroeder [Music] marion scanawa cheyenne scott twyla singer [Applause] [Music] kylie shaver trey shore tristan silvers [Applause] gavin smith jamiah smith [Music] jenna smith jennifer smith yes hey [Music] [Applause] [Music] jesse smith ryan smith [Applause] tavion smith [Music] sol solis isabelle somerville [Music] elora spade daryl spain hannah stabel [Music] nailing ellie stone olivia strandquist [Applause] [Music] [Applause] madeleine taylor [Music] kiera tomley [Music] dominic tibbetts [Music] braden tilton tanay tamoyakin kayla trojan andrew trail ramayana tucker [Music] delaney a turnip seed [Music] bridgette vaughn joshua vaughn natalia wade aaliyah wagner wow [Music] ethan wade corbin walker [Music] sariana warner alexia wayne camille weber walsh jayden weekly rhys weeks [Applause] [Music] felix whipple jasmine whitting [Applause] [Music] andrew williams anthony williams caprice williamson [Music] daniel wilson [Music] ryan woods connor wozney kaylie wire blake wine coop [Music] xavier juanez [Music] riley zavala [Music] ryan zeeler so [Music] [Music] wow just wow let's give a big round of applause [Applause] our final student speaker is kirsten hansen thank you our time at ontrack helped us focus on what we love life is nothing without love love for people love for your passions and love for the little things that make life worth living it's the little things that shape us into who we are as people maybe a teacher's lesson sparked your interest in a career field maybe a classmate's words made you laugh and boost your mood maybe you have a really awesome music playlist that you listened to when you did your homework the things we love build we who build who we are as people no matter what they might be when i first enrolled in on track academy i kept my transfer a secret for my old traditional high school friends i was embarrassed about the fact that i crashed and burned in the regular school system and that i had switched to a choice school now those friends are envious that i have the freedom to learn about what i love in school like studying my favorite authors and designing my own science labs and that i can rely on a huge network of supportive teachers that want to see students succeed like many other students here on track academy completely changed my opinion of high school and has helped me heal and blossom into the person i am today a person is who is creative inspired and loves to learn i will be growing my love for learning in the fall at the university of washington [Applause] so let this moment be a reminder to you of how exciting the world can truly be the little moments are the reason the big ones mean so much on track's motto is create what's next whatever your next might be you are leaving here today knowing that the staff and students here have helped you build a foundation for whatever comes next in your life as long as you carry a love for your passions the people around you the small things and the big things you will never feel hopeless again find a way to keep love in your heart cherish the people and moments in your life and let them inspire you to do great things because life is nothing without love so we're almost there but i'd love to have a few moments to share a final message with you seniors though i haven't had the joy of seeing you at school every day my care and love for you is greater than ever if we'd been able to chat and spend time together you would probably know that what i believe is that words matter what we say and how we say it to each other and to the world is important so important each year i seem to find a word that describes our graduating class this year i wasn't able to get the word poetic out of my mind as i thought of each of you persevering not giving up and serving others in so many ways poetic people are beautiful and imaginative they actively focus on the details of the world around them and they use words to make a difference in our society so many words are thrown about that are divisive and hurtful these words are used to tear others down and cause damage we weren't able to see each other except across the screen so your words our words mattered even more thank you you used words to take care of one another and to build others up and to capture the word poetic i want to share a poem by my favorite poet david white this reminds me of all of you and our journey together the journey above the mountains the geese turn into the light again painting their black silhouettes on an open sky sometimes everything has to be inscribed across the heavens so you can find the one line already written inside you sometimes it takes a great sky to find that first bright and indescribable wedge of freedom in your own heart sometimes with the bones of the black sticks left when the fire has gone out someone has written something new in the ashes of your life you are not leaving even as the light fades quickly now you are arriving so at this time superintendent swenyard school board president jarrell haynes it's my pleasure to confirm to you that these students have met all the graduation requirements set forth by the board of directors of spokane public schools and the state of washington and i present to you the on track academy graduating class of 2021 students please stand we're gonna turn our tassels [Music] look out world here comes the on track academy class of 2021 they have arrived [Music] [Music] um students if you would exit up the walkway to meet your families i just say whatever cause there is no way you're down [Music] it's okay it's okay gotta give your feet some gravity to get you grounded keep the things inside your ears just like the waves and sound it and just say whatever cause there is [Music] it's okay it's okay [Music] [Music] got the sun on my sunday [Music] like i said

Channel: Spokane Public Schools

Views: 4,385

Rating: 5 out of 5

Keywords: shadle park, shadle highlanders, highlanders, spokane public schools, graduation, spokane arena

Id: k7LEEuPMnYs

Length: 110min 0sec (6600 seconds)

Published: Sat Jun 12 2021