8 COLONIE SPOTLIGHT | June 23 - 29, 2021 www.spotlightnews.com
www.spotlightnews.com June 23 - 29, 2021 | COLONIE SPOTLIGHT 1
CLASS OF 2021
Colonie Central HigH SCHool
SUPERINTENDENT’S MESSAGE:
To the Class of 2021 — You Did It!
You overcame the obstacles, set aside the distractions, and you persevered. While I hope we never experience a year like the past one again, hold your heads high that you endured. Congratulations to each and every one of you. As your Superintendent of Schools — and as a 24-year educator in South Colonie Central Schools — I am so very proud of you. And I know how proud your families, teachers, friends, and the entire Colonie community are of your accomplishments.
School administrators who made you go to class, work hard to achieve, and perhaps improve your decision making skills,
Bus drivers, food service workers, maintenance staff and support staff members who serve such a critical role in daily operations and
The Board of Education members who volunteer numerous hours to ensure the District is moving in the right direction.
No matter which path lays ahead, I hope you take the time to thank the teachers, school administrators, family members, and friends who have helped you along the way. This is a joyous and momentous time in your lives; treasure every moment.
From here, you will go on to have so many rewarding experiences. Some of you will go on to college. Others will join our Armed Forces, and go on to defend our freedoms. And others will begin new careers that will not only provide you with a paycheck, but also allow you to be part of the team that rebuilds New York.
In closing, I wish you nothing but success in your coming endeavors. You are New York’s future — we need you, and we are all collectively looking forward to the great things you will achieve. Never forget how special Colonie is, how it has helped shape you, and how you can help shape our great state for those coming after you.
All of our teachers and coaches who encourage and at times push students to be their very best
Dr. David Perry Superintendent of Schools
I think we would be remiss if we did not take a few moments to thank some people:
PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE:
My Dear Seniors, The most impressionable message I can leave you all with is accentuating the importance of resilience and fortitude. Just as when you were Freshmen, you may have imagined a future that had a different vision or shape to it; that discovery of growth as you got older and re-imagining your future is paramount to personal evolution and in even dire circumstances, it’s essential to survival. For the rest of your lives, your character will constantly meet challenges through the choices and circumstances presented to you. Many, many of these circumstances will revolve in a spectrum beyond your control; yet how you handle the unfortunate, disappointing or disheartening forges the true character you possess and will be known for. It is through adversity that we can successfully build our resilience and fortitude to always successfully pursue excellence no matter the obstacles. As for your choices, you’ve experienced countless lessons from parents, mentors and educational professionals employed to hone and cultivate the best decision-making skills in you. The beauty in humanity regarding topics like resilience and fortitude is that the strongest of these foundational qualities are crafted through our response to failures. I encourage you all to go out, choose to take chances on yourselves, push your limits and never fear the amazing teaching tool inherent in failure. Civilizations have been founded on learning through making mistakes, those mistakes have been the backbone of making civilizations civil. Go imagine, endure failures, be resilient, re-imagine, learn, grow, become better and leave a legacy on the world that celebrates you as a compassionate, unstoppable, forward-thinking and proud Raider.
Have a wonderful graduation!
ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE:
It is with great excitement and pleasure that I extend my congratulations to the Class of 2021! It goes without saying that the challenges you have faced as a senior class are unprecedented. You have sacrificed so much and had to adapt to changing circumstances in ways that have tested you beyond what would ever be expected of a typical high school class. While many may have doubted your ability to handle this, you have proved them wrong every step of the way. Your maturity, school spirit, and unwavering commitment to having a fantastic senior year has really shined through, and it has brought me much joy and pride to see you celebrate together as a class at many different events this school year.
It is my hope that your innate strength and desire to make the world a better place will continue to define you as you embark on your futures and find your voices in this world. Thank you for all you have done to shape our school and community. It has been an honor to serve as your Associate Principal this year and I cannot wait to see all you will inevitably achieve.
Thomas Kachadurian, Executive Principal
Lindsay M. Tresansky Associate Principal
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