The cheers of high school seniors were heard throughout Juneau Sunday as they celebrated their graduation.
The Class of 2013 earned diplomas from Juneau-Douglas, Thunder Mountain and Yaakoosge Daakahidi high schools.
Sealaska Corp. Vice President and General Counsel Jaleen J. Araujo told the 40 alternative high school graduates “to have courage.”
Thunder Mountain has the largest senior class in Juneau this year, with 173 earning diplomas. This is the fourth class to graduate from Juneau’s newest high school, which opened in 2009. Total enrollment this school year surpassed JDHS.
Co-valedictorian Ben Travers noted TMHS’ growth over the four years.
“In just a few years we have proven we are no longer the underdog,” he said.
TMHS Physical Education teacher Jim Kearns had three pieces of advice for the graduates:
Remember to look back, so you remember who you are and where you came from
Dare to do right by being kind and charitable
Have a positive attitude
One-hundred forty-two seniors earned diplomas from JDHS. Student body vice president Juliana Lukshin reminded her classmates to keep their options open.
She looked to American author and humorist Mark Twain to explain. Loosely quoting, he said 20 years from now the students would likely be more disappointed by the things they did not do than those they did.
Indeed. The JDHS Class of 2013 chose this motto from Dr. Seuss:
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.”
This story was updated to include photos from the JDHS Graduation from the JDHS Video Crew.
