LYNN — Family and friends gathered on Manning Field Thursday morning to celebrate the 564 seniors graduating.
Students processed down the field to their seats to begin the ceremony, and Valedictorian and Class President Valeria Mendez welcomed them all.
“I’m deeply honored to stand before you today as this year’s senior class president,” Mendez said. She then paused for a moment of silence to remember the members of the Class of 2025 who were no longer with them.
“Graduates, today marks the end of one chapter of our lives, and as we turn our tassels, a new one begins. … High school really did pass in the blink of an eye, and contrary to what many say, it wasn’t so bad after all,” she said. “This is a testimony to all our hard work, sacrifices, and dedication put into the last years. This is your moment. Capture it and remember it.”
Mendez told her fellow students to be proud of making it to graduation.
“Now, my fellow graduates, you’ve grown with resilience and have become members of society who are capable of changing and shaping the future in your image. The world is waiting; be bold and allow yourself to enjoy the wonders of the world,” she said.
Mendez then welcomed Principal Dr. Rardy Peña for his speech.
“Today we celebrate your hard work, growth and resiliency. It is an honor to stand before you as we mark this major milestone,” Peña said. “To the graduates, it is a tribute to your strength and spirit. You have demonstrated resiliency through uncertainty, growth through challenges, and embraced each challenge with courage and creativity.”
Peña told the students to appreciate how far they have come, celebrate their achievements, cherish their memories, and look forward to the future with hope and excitement.
Mendez then welcomed Superintendent Dr. Evonne Alvarez to speak.
She began by thanking the teachers and staff who have dedicated their time to the students, the family members who have supported the students, Mayor Jared Nicholson, City Council members, and the School Committee members who are there today.
“Today marks the close of one beautiful chapter and the extraordinary beginning of the next. As we gather to celebrate your graduation, we reflect not only on the year of learning and growth that brought you here but also on the unique journey that makes this milestone so deeply meaningful,” she said. “Class of 2025, today we celebrate more than your graduation. We celebrate your voice, your growth, and your place in this world. You’ve earned your seat at the table, and now the question is what will you do with it?”
Nicholson was announced to speak next, addressing the graduates and all of their accomplishments.
“For all the graduates, I recommend that you find someone today in your life who looks up to you. A younger brother, younger sister, cousin, neighbor friend, and tell them what today means to you because I know it means something,” he said. “It should mean something. It means a lot what you’ve been able to achieve.
And in doing that, you have no idea how significant it will be to that young person to hear from you, how motivating it will be… But you also may not appreciate that in you having that conversation what it will mean to you. In that moment to see yourself the way that young person sees you. To see the potential in all that you have to offer. That’s how we see you and we are so proud of you.”
Salutatorian Omeiry Rodriguez addressed her fellow graduates after Nicholson.
“Standing here today delivering this speech is an honor that I would never imagined in the 13 years that I have been in the Lynn Public Schools system. We some how survived the first awkward days of freshman year and the bittersweet goodbyes at the end of senior year. We are finally graduating. But we didn’t just make it. We struggled, we grew and we succeeded,” Rodriguez said.
She spoke about the pressure they all faced, and the hard work they did to push forward and get to where they are today.
“The world we are walking into it bigger, messier and more complex then anything we have ever faced before, but if we learned anything in these LEHS hallways it’s that we are capable of more than we know,” she said.
Mendez returned to the podium after Rodriguez for her valedictorian address, thanking her parents who came to the country as immigrants supporting her always.
“I wear this cap and gown for you and for all those who were never able to,” she said.
The commencement speaker that morning was Deputy Superintendent and LEHS graduate of the Class of 1981 Debra Ruggiero.
She told the class about how when she was in their shoes, she felt a great deal of uncertainty for the future.
“I stand before you to say yes it can be done. I am also a first generation college graduate. I’m here to tell you that no mater what your own internal dialogue is today, if you set your mind to what you want you can achievement,” she said.
The students then received their diplomas and switched their tassels officially making them Lynn English High School graduates. They then gathered at the back of the field for the cap toss and family and friends took to the field to celebrate their graduates.
