Flashback: Graduates take the stage: Kensington Woods holds ceremony for Class of 2014
Graduates take the stage: Kensington Woods holds ceremony for Class of 2014
Livingston Daily
July 24, 2014
Kensington Woods High School hosted its 2014 graduation ceremonies June 6 at the Whitmore Lake Performing Arts Center in Northfield Township.
All of the graduates were accepted into college, and the Class of 2014's ACT composite score average, a 21.4, ranked second in the county and more than 2 points higher than the state average.
"The class was a tight-knit, dedicated class that shaped the school with their creativity, dedication and work ethic," said Director of Educational Programming, Jessie Pratt.
Senior English teacher Ken Ferguson recognized their work in creating a $44.67 production of Macbeth this spring that involved the entire senior class.
"The seniors put the show together with recycled materials, pieces of people's homes, a bunch of cans of spray paint, duct tape, string, hot glue and donated bed sheets," he said. "Most importantly, we learned a lot about Macbeth they grew closer as a graduating class, and we all have lasting memories and a few scars."
The seniors also demonstrated their achievements through their senior exhibition projects. Kensington Woods High School's senior exhibition is a yearlong project designed to showcase student achievement through a representation of the qualities the school values: academics, character and service as well as independent thinking and personal responsibility.
Students have been guided through their senior exhibitions, a graduation requirement at Kensington Woods High School, throughout their senior English class. In the course of the project, students developed questions about a social issue of their choice; researched the origins, causes and possible solutions to the problem; wrote a research paper; and conducted a sustainable service project that relates to the research.
Along the way, seniors developed skills in communicating, project design and implementation, organizing, time management and mentoring.
The topics addressed by the Kensington Woods Class of 2014 varied, based on each students' interests and passions.
Topics addressed included law enforcement ethics, learning from foreign education systems, happiness, procrastination, the effects of social networking, graffiti and how it can benefit society, and the effects of mental disorders on students.
Kensington Woods High School honored several graduates during the commencement ceremony.
Students were honored for their academic achievements during the ceremony as well as their demonstration of character and service throughout high school.
Honorees included: Brittany Schepak, valedictorian; Mariah Schepak, salutatorian; Benjamin Ebaugh; Christiana Eisenhut; Virginia Grove; Sarah Harbaugh; Casimer Ora; Hannah Rickelmann; Mark Siminski; Holly Brahm-Henkel and Eric Shore.
Kensington Woods High School has a 100 percent college-placement rate for all graduates.
Kensington Woods' commencement ceremony is also a special time because each student gets a chance to recognize those in their lives who helped make their success possible.
Many students thanked teachers, family members and friends.
The Class of 2014 graduates were also addressed by keynote speaker Chuck Fellows, parent Diane Heinig and teacher Shawn Pollman.