Central High grads go back to the beginning

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Central High School seniors graduated from the same place they began their secondary education careers six years ago, at Memorial Junior High.

With the threat of rain pushing the Valley Stream Central High School District’s three graduations indoors last Friday evening, a large enough space was needed to accommodate Central’s 317 graduates plus family members. That was just up the road in Memorial’s gymnasium.

The graduates filled the front half of the gym with family members filling out the rest of the space, including three walls of bleachers. Several hundred guests also watched video feed of the ceremony in the two cafeterias.

Principal Dr. Joseph Pompilio, who congratulated the 85th class to graduate from Central, said this was a group of students he has always admired.

For four years, those students have been led by class President Jordan Woo — dating back to their junior high days. He said he had been waiting to give his graduation speech for a long time, yet still didn’t sit down to write the words until the night before.

Woo thanked the teachers for their devotion to the class of 2011, and noted that they are not only educators, but friends as well. And he said he finally understands Pompilio’s constant reminders that the administrators and teachers are there to prepare the students for the real world.

Salutatorian Sabrina Ahmed said Central High School is a special place because of the people there. Central is a second house, she said, but it’s the people that made it a second home.

Ahmed told her fellow graduates that they shouldn’t live with regret. She said one of her worst habits is wondering what could have been. Additionally, she told them to dream big and live life to its fullest.

“This day is the end of one chapter of your life,” she said, “and the beginning of another.”

Valedictorian Margaret Milano said the teachers have prepared the students well for the challenges they will face after high school. Every graduate is a different person than they were when entering Central three years ago, she noted.

Milano cautioned her fellow graduates against letting fear or doubt stand in the way of achieving their dreams, and told them not to be afraid of hard work. “Nothing worth having comes easily,” she said.