Valedictorian to Classmates: Be Passionate As You Move On

's 218-strong Class of 2011, clad in blue and yellow robes, came together on the football field Thursday to walk across the stage and symbolically begin a new chapter.

Don’t squander this opportunity, valedictorian Teresa Lively urged her classmates.

“Be passionate about everything you do,” Lively said in her speech. “It is so easy to exist instead of live.”

Parents filled the stadium with cameras, bouquets of flowers and balloons in hand. Amid the day that students and their families had waited for came some reflection on the journey.

The two-hour ceremony included a band performance of "The Circle of Life" from "The Lion King," as well as a life lesson courtesy of the Beatles—"All You Need Is Love"—from the school choir.

The graduation ceremony featured speeches from students, including an emotional parent recognition speech given by student Shaquille Gurley.

“I have always lived by my mother’s word,” Gurley told the audience, before presenting a bouquet of flowers to his mother.

Maura Coyle, this year's salutatorian, spoke to her class about both the past and the future of their lives.

“In one way or another, we all knew this day was coming,” Coyle said to her classmates. “The future, that has up to this point remained comfortable far away, has unveiled itself.”

Every student made special mention of Collingswood High School's faculty and staff, and students cheered on their mentors. Lively noted that the faculty fostered education in every aspect of life.

“Our teachers have become more than our educators. They have become our mentors, friends and role models,” she said. 

Administrators turned the praise back around to the class and its accomplishments.

Superintendent Scott Oswald said to the graduates, “You have plenty of time to go out and find your calling—starting tomorrow.”

Oswald said that the Class of 2011 is one of the best he has seen go through the school system.

“This class is a really academically talented class. We have several students that have GPAs over 4.0. They are going to some prestigious schools,” Oswald said. “It is definitely a focused class. It really gives us hope for the future.”

Graduates will attend more than 100 colleges and universities nationwide; seven plan to join the Army, Navy, Coast Guard or Marines. 

Principal Edward Hill reminded students not just of the importance of getting an education, but of applying the lessons they’ve learned. Most importantly, he said, no one can take the education away from the Collingswood graduates. 

The principal credited the students for making Collingswood High School the place it is. 

"Collingswood High School is made up of great kids, and they've all demonstrated that. Not only through academics, but through their extracurricular involvement in school," he said. "They have contributed in so many areas, that, when they leave here, we have given them the background and preparation they need to be successful. Congratulations to all the 2011 graduates."

Throughout the ceremony, it was apparent to all that the students were eager to walk across the stage, flip their tassels from right to left, and become official graduates of Collingswood High School.

“It feels like we’re off to bigger and better adventures,” said Laura Ciervo, who will attend Towson University in the fall.

Salutatorian Coyle, off to Maryland’s Loyola College in the fall, knows she will miss the personality of her hometown.

“Collingswood was a blast. There was so much opportunity,” Coyle said after the ceremony. “There is an amazing faculty that taught me to mature as a young person. Collingswood is that small town that nurtures us as young people.”

Valedictorian Lively said she worked hard but the effort was worth it.

“I made great friends and developed great relationships,” said Lively, who will study political science and economics at the University of Dallas. “I’m definitely going to miss it here.”