Three area high schools held commencement ceremonies last week. Things started off on Thursday when early rain left the Union High School football field too soggy to hold the graduation ceremony, moving the event into the high school gym.
Sixty-one seniors completed their high school education, with valedictorian Matthew Hennington and salutatorian Julie Alexander giving their addresses.
The commencements continued on Friday with Newton High School’s ceremony starting at 7 p.m. at Morgan Field.
One of Newton High’s most accomplished recent graduates, Dennis Pickens Jr., gave the commencement address at the ceremony. Pickens is an assurance associate for the U.K.-based company EY and was a rotary ambassadorial scholar at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.
The Ole Miss graduate told the Class of 2018 that making the right choices will be vital in the coming years.
“Life doesn’t just happen. We chose what happens we chose to be happy, we chose to be sad. Life is filled with choices and at every juncture there is a choice to choose what is best,” Pickens said.
Pickens said Newton School Board attorney Robert Logan inspired him to apply for more scholarships so he could afford to go to Ole Miss, and talked about being underestimated by his early colleagues because he was from a small town in Mississippi but eventually rising above to give his best performance.
In his speech, valedictorian Demarius Evans said the NHS teachers inspired them to achieve their best and lift the high school’s grade from a D to B in the 2016-17 school year.
“We developed the ability to use criticism and doubt as motivation, and that is truly special,” Evans said.
Dr. Cory Johnson of the Class of 1997, presented Zyreaia Tingle with the inaugural $1,000 Brown-Hardaway Scholarship, which was created in the memory of two late members of the NHS Class of 1997, Ken Brown and Desmond Hardaway.
NHS Principal Shernise Wilson also announced the recipients of the McMullan Scholarships for $20,000 each which when to Mar’Quayvis Smith, salutatorian Tony Burks, Destiny Amerson, Adrian Hall and Evans.
Wilson also announced that 11 highest honors and 27 more who graduated with honors.
Newton County High School began at 8 p.m. Friday at Cougar Stadium. Valedictorian Anna Sibley and salutatorian Brianna Dailey both gave their addresses and NCHS Principal Shane Phillips presented this year’s STAR Student, Cody Gressett and STAR Teacher Suzanne Cain.
