Vally Stream Highlights: Class of 2024 Graduation

They came by the dozens — families, teachers, and alumni — to watch this year’s graduating Valley Stream seniors walk the stage and be handed their diplomas. The district’s trio of high schools — North, Central, and South — each held their ceremony last week, marking the final and most significant milestone of the Class of 2024 with the familiar fanfare of previous years.

But this was no ordinary graduating class — whose past four years of high school could hardly be described in ordinary terms.

The Takeaway 

• Valley Stream's three high schools, North, Central, and South, held graduation ceremonies to celebrate the Class of 2024, marking a significant milestone for students and their families with traditional fanfare.
• The Class of 2024 faced an extraordinary high school experience marked by the global pandemic, remote learning, social distancing, and the subsequent return to in-person education amid ongoing societal challenges such as school gun violence, mental health issues, and political unrest.
• Speeches from school principals and salutatorians highlighted the students' resilience and encouraged them to face future uncertainties with curiosity, self-care, and a commitment to positive values such as kindness, empathy, and integrity.

After a global virus had sent the nation into lockdown, members of the Class of 2024 spent their freshman year in a fearful cloud of isolation and restriction. They learned behind computer screens. They sat masked in quiet, slimmed-down, and socially distanced classrooms.

As the pandemic faded and online remote learning was phased out, they navigated the thawing of social life in person. They experienced what it meant to go to school under a “new normal” amid the backdrop of a not-so-normal world —   burdened by historic and ongoing challenges from rising school gun violence to mounting mental health challenges to widespread political unrest.

“Your high school journey was never going to be ordinary. It was destined to be marked by the enduring imprint of history,” said North High School Principal Robin Small, addressing the crowd.

“Your first year of high school was transformed by the unprecedented challenges of hybrid and remote learning…Despite the challenges, you have gained something invaluable, you have developed grit.”

South High School salutatorian Emily Nothdurft encouraged her fellow graduates to approach the uncertainty of the future with a posture of playful curiosity.

“We have much unknown ahead of us and so many questions we don’t even know we’ll be asking ourselves,” she said in her address. “And that’s frightening but also incredibly exciting, so let’s ask the big questions, no matter how hard it may seem...It’s okay for us not to have all the answers, but we must keep asking questions.”

“In a world so immersed in technology, it’s often hard to remember we have a voice. A voice that has the power to enact change, express emotion, and bring life to others,” said Central High School salutatorian Mary Youssef. “As you progress into adulthood, it is easy to be consumed by the things on social media or things of monetary value but what remains is finding wealth in yourself.” 

“I checked in with your future bosses, the adults,” said Valley Stream South High School principal Matthew Swinson, addressing graduates. “You’re going to need this to navigate the unpredictable world of being an adult: first and foremost, you must prioritize your physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing, also known as self-care. Life is going to be a grind and you’ll have to be prepared for it” 

He continued: “Carry the values of kindness, empathy, and integrity and strive to make a positive impact on the world. This is what impresses people and what will impress your future bosses. As you grow — and this is probably going to be the most challenging one — check in to make sure you are happy with the person you are becoming. You navigated the challenges of 2020. You got this.”

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