A Message From the Superintendent
Celebrating our Parsippany 2022 Graduates Dr. Barbara Sargent
Congratulations to our graduating students and their families! Both Parsippany High School and Parsippany Hills High School celebrated our senior students with beautiful outdoor ceremonies on their respective home fields. We wish the students a happy, healthy, and successful journey as they begin new adventures. My farewell address to the students is provided here for your reflection. “Welcome to our families, our faculty, Board of Education members, and our outstanding graduates. It is a privilege to recognize and celebrate the completion of your Parsippany-Troy Hills school experience today. What a marvelous journey you’ve had. I come from a hiking family. My father was an Eagle Scout and our family vacations consisted of camping and hiking. When I had my own children, three sons who were involved with Boy Scouts for years and who are Eagle Scouts, we hiked all over. Jenny Jump Mountain, Sunfish Pond, Hacklebarney, Acadia, the Smoky Mountains, the Rocky Mountains. And the number one rule in hiking – besides sturdy shoes and good snacks – is “Leave No Trace”. This is important because we want to keep our forests and mountains 8 l Parsippany Focus Magazine
beautiful and untouched; therefore, we carry out what we carry in. I was thinking what a contrast this is to the messages we give our students - and how completely wrong it would be to tell our graduates to leave no trace when they go out into the world. Can you imagine saying to high school graduates, “Don’t touch anything.” “Keep your ideas to yourself.” The message, in fact, should be quite the opposite. Graduates, what mark will you leave on the world? Upon whose heart will you leave footprints? In what hallways and communities will the echo of your strong and fierce voices repeat? I know many of you and am certain you will leave breadcrumbs of kindness, service, and friendship in your journeys. Those around you will be fortified by your enthusiasm, your gumption, and your clear sense of right and wrong. Leave a trace. Make your mark. Be your bold and beautiful selves. Because, while the forests should look untouched, the wake you leave as your travel through life should not be so pristine. Congratulations, be safe, and be kind. We will miss you.”
www.parsippanyfocus.news
July 2022
