Two Scotland High School students were awarded high school diplomas at Scotland High School’s summer graduation ceremony. The event was held in the East Laurinburg auditorium in front of a crowd of more 100 students, teachers and family members.
“I would like to thank Mr. (John) Teal, Mrs. (Kye) Ferguson, Mrs. (Barbara) Black, Mrs. (Marguerite) Langford and everyone else at East Laurinburg for giving me an opportunity to get my high school diploma,” said Thao of the School of Math, Science and Technology, “Without them, there would never be a day that I would ever get to see a diploma with my name on it.”
Strickland echoed Thao’s sentiments, saying that this diploma was not only for her, but for her mom as well. Strickland was a student of the School of Business, Finance and Marketing.
“I dropped out of Scotland High School because with all the days I missed of school, there was no way I would have been able to bring up my grades in time to be able to graduate,” Strickland said. “Look at me now. My mom finally gets to see what she has been waiting to see for 18 years, me walking across the stage.”
Teal, the principal at East Laurinburg, said that he was proud of the students he worked with for refocusing their efforts on education.
“This was just a little bump in the road,” Teal said. “They did everything they were supposed to do. Yes, if you give them an opportunity to, they can. Let them be a beacon for others.”
This marks the second year for the summer graduation program which was designed to recognize those students who earn their degrees over the summer.
Other Scotland High School students who earned course credits through the Apex Learning digital curriculum were also recognized at the ceremony.
Keynote speaker Rev. Darrel Gibson told the students to be proud of their accomplishments.
“The race is not given to the swift,” Gibson said. “It is given to those there at the end.”
Gibson told the students that it was a special time for them because they endured the hardship of finishing their classwork despite setbacks.
“Enduring suggests that we won’t always have things easy,” he said. “But it means you’ve made up in your mind that you will make it through.”
Gibson told the students that it wasn’t always about how big the dog was in the fight, but how big the fight was in the dog. Gibson said that the students exemplified this statement because they kept pushing and he knew that they would succeed in life.
The graduates were then given their diploma by BFM principal Fred Thomas and MST principal Dr. Mark Duckworth.
The students were ushered in with a bagpipe precession by 13-year-old Hannah Chavis.
Scotland County School’s superintendent Rick Stout ended the ceremony by thanking the students and teachers at East Laurinburg, as well as recognizing school board members in attendance.
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