The Preble Shawnee Class of 2024 was the first in Preble County to walk across the stage as high school graduates, on Saturday morning, May 18. The graduating class of 117 students earned over $1,341,000 in college scholarships. Two members of the class will be moving on to serve in the U.S. Army.
Mike Champine (Champine Photography) | For The Register-Herald
CAMDEN — The Preble Shawnee Class of 2024 was the first in Preble County to walk across the stage as high school graduates, on Saturday morning, May 18.
The graduating class of 117 students earned over $1,341,000 in college scholarships. Two members of the class will be moving on to serve in the U.S. Army.
The class valedictorian, salutatorian, and a class speaker addressed those in attendance at the ceremony held at the school’s football stadium.
Caitlin Faulkner, valedictorian said that rather than write a 15-minute speech about memories of school and a creating a memorable quote, she took suggestions for what she should include.
“I heard some suggestions like keep it short, say something funny — but the most common thing I was told to talk about was something meaningful. So I’m going to talk about myself,” she said. “Unlike a lot of the seniors sitting here, I was not in school for my senior year. Instead, I spent the entirety of my senior year doing online college classes, working and planning out the next step. My future.”
She continued, “Because of this, I very often got asked the question, ‘Aren’t you sad about missing out your senior year?’ Well, not entirely. I was sad I was going to miss my friends and miss out on those memories that stick with you forever. But I was also excited for the same reason. We are all excited to walk off the stage today. I was done with high school and thankfully over these last nine months, I experienced a lot more than I ever could participating in my senior year. I learned the feeling of what responsibility was, paying for things like my own car, food and necessities. I got a glimpse of what my college life would be like taking a full semester of classes. I even got to do my own taxes.
“We all said we couldn’t wait to be adults,” Faulkner said. “But most importantly, to me personally, I found that I found a sense of identity that I didn’t quite have while in high school, one that was not associated with just having good grades. I made new friends that I hope will stay in my life for a very, very long, long time.
“Now, you’re all probably thinking, ‘what is this self-absorbed girl getting at by talking about herself?’ Well, here’s my point. High School is one of the most important moments of our lives. Up until now, our parents, teachers and coaches have raised us, taking care of us and taught us things that made us into the people we are today. However, we’re entering a new period of our lives. One where we are now responsible for ourselves and everything we choose to do. We’re the adults now,” she said.
“And the moment we walk off this stage, we get to take everything we’ve learned over not just the last four years, but everything we’ve been taught up until this moment and use that to become the people we want to be, whether you choose to attend college, take a gap year, travel or go straight into a job. It doesn’t matter. Because all that’s in front of us is our future. It’s scary to leave behind a place or situation we’ve known our whole lives, but it’s also exciting. And as someone who’s familiarized myself with life outside of high school, I can confidently say, say no matter what you do, you’re going to be doing something new. You’re going to be doing something of your choosing, and it’s going to be great. We’re all going to do great,” she concluded.
Salutatorian Paige House touched on memories, and grief, and togetherness in the community.
“We were kids together and now we are taking the step into adulthood together. I think the theme of ‘togetherness’ in our community has shone through, and in different moments throughout our lives at Preble Shawnee, from watching our boys go to the Final Four in basketball or on our saddest moments coming together to support those that we have lost. This community and school has given us all an opportunity to learn about collaboration and love that most people at school don’t receive.
“Like others in my class and community, I have faced my own grief, as I lost my mother, stepfather and baby sister Emery when I was 11 years old. Though I do not remember much of that time. I remember the love I have found in my community from cards from my classmates or the candlelight vigil held in my family’s honor. At this moment, I would like to properly thank my classmates and community for their support and kindness through this period of my life. We began high school in 2020 with COVID and all the craziness from that period.
“All of us since that time, and even before as middle school and elementary students, we have faced tremendous challenges from grief, mental health, school, sports and everything in between, alongside our community,” House continued. “We have been taught to persevere through this hardship, and we can take that perseverance with us into the next steps of our lives. We as a class have overcome our own obstacles but we have still found a way to make it to this moment right here. “My biggest wish for you, my classmates is to take in this moment with me and realize that this is a probably the last time we will all be in the same place. I hope we can all take our perseverance from our years of Preble Shawnee High School as well as the love that we have found in this community and for each other, and take the step forward into our into our future.”
Kathryn Hall, 2024 class speaker, was the final for the ceremony. She touched on the things students didn’t realize they were learning in the classroom and at school, highlighting the life skills like problem solving, time management and communication.
“How many of you can tell me the quadratic formula. Bueller? How many of you can tell me the definition of a complex compound sentence? How many of you can tell me exactly how photosynthesis works at the microscopic level?” she asked those in attendance. “Me neither,” she answered herself. “High school is supposed to teach us how the world works. We have taken four years of classes to gain all the knowledge we could possibly need. So, if we don’t know these fundamental concepts, what did we get out of high school?
“We learned how to be people,” she continued. “We have spent the last four years becoming young adults. Not because we know how to find the leg of the third side of a triangle. Not because we know how to properly light magnesium on fire. We are prepared to go into the world because of all the things we didn’t realize we were learning.”
Reach Eddie Mowen Jr. at 937-683-4061 and follow on X @emowenjr.
