Now that you are grown adults outside my classroom, I can finally say I must favorite well wishes.
Good Luck fuckers.
And I mean this in the most living way possible.
Because class of 2025, you are my graduating class’s mirror.
First, the dark reflection:
During our middle school years, we experienced the horrific event of Columbine and safety in schools changed. During your youth, we faced the tragedy of Parkland. Safety in schools has been transformed once again.
Desert War ended for us when we were young and for the class of 2025, the war in the middle east finally ended. Though not as smoothly as we would have wished.
The class of 2005 had their world forever changed with 9/11. Because of those horrific events, your lives will never know how simple traveling used to be. 2025 also faced a world changing event, covid. Your generation was shaped by the most isolating event in recent memory.
But your class, the class of 2025, didn’t shut down. I watched you all as eighth graders reached for one another and built each other up. I could not be more proud of how your class has strived to never be alone. Checking in with each other and reaching out when they were worried for a classmate. There are a few that I know I ensured saw the next day.
I never thought I would watch you all walk across the stage as grown adults. Parts of me wishes you wouldn’t reach the other side because I will deeply miss you all.
Now the brightness:
The class of 2025 I watcher you all see things you didn’t like about the class of 2024 and changed it. The mentorship and guidance you gave to the underclassmen in our program made every single one of them feel welcomed. You didn’t care for the spotlight and shared it. You built a team and encouraged them to grow and learn. I hope you keep this in mind whatever journey you find yourselves on.
Right now, it looks as if you will head into adulthood in a recession just like we did. And it may seem scary, but it’s not the end of the world. Just live. Travel everywhere. Eat all the delicious food. GO DANCE! And for the love of God, don’t worry about being cringe. Because when you do, you’ll miss out on everything.
You may have been told that you that you have to follow a certain path, but it’s all lies. Rules don’t exist. Get your degree now or travel the world. Doesn’t matter. Go back to school when you feel ready. Work in a blue collar job or a white collar job but do whatever brings you joy because life is too short. There is no promise of tomorrow.
So once again, good luck with adulthood. Remember everyday above ground is a good day. And when you wake up in the morning, it is your chance to start over and bring joy to the world.
During the first night of STN, we celebrated our awards. Seminole Ridge took home two third place and one second place awards. This is nothing to scoff at. Our kids worked their asses off this year. The news kids far more than the film kids. As we waited our turn to take pictures on the stage, the DJ began playing closing time. Part of me wanted to yell at him because one we earned our time to take this picture and two, the song isn’t about the bar closing. It’s about a chapter of the songwriter’s life ending. He was becoming a father and welcoming his baby girl into his life. But as I thought about that, I couldn’t think of a more appropriate song.
My students who are graduating this year are closing a giant chapter in their life. In three short months, a large portion of the thirty students I chaperoned will be heading off to college, while others will attend vocational school. But it doesn’t matter where their future is. They all have the same thing in front of them. The world is for them to take.
I saw students that have screwed around for most of the year create an amazing news package. And with all honesty, I really wanted to smack them. Their work was professional. In all honesty, it surpassed some of the news packages that aired on the news station where I worked. I just wish they put the same effort into my film class as they did during this competition. Unfortunately, they didn’t even earn an honorable mention.
Another pair of students that I watched worked took home honorable mention. Watching somebody who is usually a goofball transform into a professional was astounding. To see him work as a photographer like I have seen other seasoned photographer’s work gave me hope. He listened to everything his partner asked him. He never once changed her story, but he provided her with ideas about how the camera should be placed. But the moment the shoot was over, he went back to being a goofball. Which is pretty appropo for a photog. You should see what type of hungry fiends they turn into during the political season. No pizza is safe.
Some of our young female journalists did not make the cut to place this year. And my heart breaks for them because this was their last year to win. In the past, our school brought home a truckload of awards. However, the judges were different this year. They critiqued much harder than the previous years. Even the board of directors, who is a friend of my co teacher, said that this year’s winners were quarters of a point off from those who didn’t place.
That’s amazing and depressing all at once. The bar has been raised and we need to work harder. That means that the sophomores that we brought with us are going to have to work three times as hard as those that are graduating this year. My juniors had a hunger as we flew home to Florida. They know the work that they have to put into it. Some sophomores seemed to not care while others showed a passion and a drive that is going to make them placed in the years to come.
Unfortunately, judging is not everything that held us down. We shot ourselves in the foot from the beginning. Our vlog team kept fighting. And by the time they could finally sort things out and put egos aside, they wasted far too much time. It wasn’t just in California that they battled it out. Who would be on camera and who wouldn’t? They wasted a bunch of time back home, given the chance to practice. Aside from them, our film team was green. Not just age wise, but experience. Part of the fault is mine. This was my first time in a major competition, so I did not know what to expect. Two of our seniors, this was also their first time. And while we had someone experienced on our team, jealousy and anxiety overtook their ability to perform. The student also lost my trust. Sadly, this student got caught up in gossip and started a rumor of their own. They claimed that our strongest editor wasn’t skilled in their own right, but I did the work for them.
This rumor was nothing more than utter nonsense. That student has heard me say time and time again, “if I wanted to edit I wouldn’t be teaching.” Which is 100% the truth. It’s just sad that I have gone out of my way for this student and in a moment of weakness, they had to bring down someone on their team. What’s even worse is I heard it on an accidental recording and that student lied to my face when confronted.
But I will not let this moment or our lack of awards bring us down in the future.
In the next two years, we have an advantage. Instead of Long Beach, California, we’re going to be in Tampa Bay, Florida. It’s just a quick drive across the state and one that we will scout out locations. One that we know the history of the city and all its dirty secrets. However, we’re not the only ones with the advantage. Over 200 awards were given out in Long Beach, California, with more than half awarded to students living in southeast Florida. Every single one of those schools has the same opportunity as we do. And I know a bunch of schools will take advantage of that opportunity.
So now, as closing time plays on my radio, all I can think of is that the chapter is closed. The point where we could take home award after award is over. Students from across the country, and now internationally, have come to compete. Our students have to step up. But I have 100% know that our kids are competitive. They have a drive needed to win. And for those students graduating, becoming young adults, they are going to do amazing things.
