On the afternoon of December 8th, the mild, captivating tune of Pomp and Circumstance music filled the Rodney MacArthur Auditorium, signalling the entrance of 5th and 6th Form students. Soon they would take their front row seats as a gorgeous spectacle of blue and gold, which characterised yet another graduation ceremony — the class of 2021.
On the heels of a series of classroom interruptions brought on by the notorious Covid-19 pandemic, over the past year, for the most part, the students had striven admirably in stemming the tide of unusual protocols. Stay-home restrictions, social distancing and the uncomfortable, inconvenient wearing of masks had become the necessary new normal.
Now, they were graduating under the befitting theme: “Powered by Resilience”. And, at the end of the ceremony, Principal Rita Carty highlighted the fact that, according to the Ministry of Education’s report in The Anguillian Newspaper of October 29th, this was indeed “the most accomplished group of the last few years.”
The Wednesday evening ceremony proper got underway as the rendering of the National Anthem, National Song and the School Song gave way to Cannon Simon Reid who offered a profound prayer of invocation.
The Chairperson, Ms. Waynika Romney, introduced the Honourable Minister of Education, Miss Dee-Ann Kentish Rogers who commended the graduates as a class that has shown resilient action. She stated: “Everyone here this evening will remind you that you have powered through the difficulties of a category 5 hurricane and a pandemic with resilience. You have made it out as victors.
Class of 2021, both 5th and 6th Formers, what you have shown is that you are not only dreamers, but you are also doers. As Shonda Rimes once said, ‘Dreams are lovely. But they don’t come through just because you dream them’. It is hard work that makes things happen. And it is clear that the Class of 2021 is a class of doers, and Anguilla is lucky to have you.”
The Keynote speaker was Dr. Leroy Hill, who addressed the graduands via video feed from Trinidad. He told them: “You are about to embark on the most exciting phase of your lives, knowing that your graduation is not the end, but the beginning of a dynamic future. This thought is important as you prepare to face life ahead. While your future is uncertain, your years at ALHCS would have prepared you to be resilient. You have shown that you can persevere in the midst of adversity. ”
“What defines you,” he said, “is not today’s event. You are not resilient because you are today celebrating the end of your journey here. What defines you is that you are powered by resilience because you found it in you to stay calm and keep on learning.” Still elaborating on the theme “Powered by Resilience”, he stressed on four areas of tenacity with which he encouraged the Class. He called these “Four “Power-up Tokens”.
“Power-up Token number 1 is to power up your own space. Create your own definitions of success. Mark your boundaries: physically, mentally and digitally. For some of you, global-thinking and local-acting will require you to constantly create your own space. Power-up Token number 2 is to power up your moves and your efforts. Stay calm and keep on moving. Work you ideas to reality. Many individuals would miss good opportunities because they were afraid of doing what was necessary to be successful. I am guided by the proverb which says: ‘All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.’ Unless you work your dreams to action, your dreams are useless.
“Then Power-up Token number 3,” Mr. Hill said, “is to power up your learning. Stay calm and keep on learning. The day you decide to stop learning is the day you cease to advance in this global-thinking local-acting setting. Finally, Power-up token number 4 is to power up your fair game. Whatever space you occupy, no matter how hard things may become, no matter how challenged you might be, I want to encourage you to always be a fair player.”
Following the presentation of certificates to almost two hundred graduands, the Principal gave congratulatory remarks: “Form 5, you have worked hard to make your dreams real. Congratulations! You must continue to work hard. Your journey has just begun, and you are entering young adulthood at a time when the world is under duress and in protest. But you will make it.
“Already, you sit here as a successful cohort of students, despite unprecedentedly harrowing circumstances. As the Ministry of Education reported in The Anguilian newspaper of October 29th, 2021, you are the most accomplished group of students of the last few years. (Graduands responded in loud applause.)
“Form 6 cohort, at your last ALHCS graduation, you declared that you were being prepared to be leaders — ‘The Royals, Raising Our Youth as Leaders’. You hold on to this even now with this symbolic scroll in your hands, and you have also added the word ‘successfully’. Please know that leadership is a broad term which encompasses everything that one may influence others to do, whether good or bad. You must ensure that you define your leadership role as making positive contributions to the general good.”
A farewell address was given by fellow-graduand, Rhonica Connor. She gave a comprehensive overview of the change of school-life since the onslaught of Hurricane Irma and the the Covid pandemic, but she insisted that even those were too weak to quell their resilience.
“It is a humbling honour to have the privilege of saying farewell on behalf of the legends — the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School’s Graduating Class of 2021.
“Our high school years have not been ordinary. If there is one word to describe our year group, it would most definitely be ‘resilient’… Throughout our high school years, we overcame every obstacle thrown at us. And it is our hope that we continue being powered by resilience as we find our places in this world.
“When September 2017 came, it was the beginning of our era of resilience. Hurricane Irma had hit, and school life as we knew it had forever changed. Then, adding to the stress that we were still enduring from the effects of the hurricane, all of a sudden Covid entered the chat. We have had to now endure the island shutting down, and we were out of school. Two weeks turned into two more weeks and then into two months. Once again we had to adjust to a whole new form of schooling. The entire world had been affected by this pandemic, but as resilient as we are, we had to keep pushing. We had to”
Remember our resilience by which we are powered. That resilience lives in us.. If there is one lesson that we must take on our life’s journey, it is that we can accomplish anything we set our minds to. We can overcome any adversity…There is no doubt that life will be filled with challenges but they only make our successes more worthwhile.”
The Vote of Thanks was delivered by Form 6 graduand, Niamke Brooks, following a parting selection by two Form 5 graduands, Daéja Richardson and Zhanae Carter.
