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player ready...Libertyville High School capped off the 2020-2021 school year with an in-person graduation ceremony Thursday, one year after the novel coronavirus pandemic upended the previous graduating class’s senior events.
In total, 458 students graduated from LHS as part of the Class of 2021, officials said. The ceremony was originally supposed to take place on the LHS football field, but ended up being moved indoors due to the weather. As a result, officials said the class this year is the first to graduate in the school’s main gym.
The pandemic was a strong theme among those who spoke at commencement, with several students talking about the challenges of the pandemic. Some who spoke mentioned the constant changes that occurred throughout the year.
Principal Thomas Koulentes listed some of those changes that happened. They included starting the school year with all-remote learning, then moving to hybrid instruction with half-days, and having to go through testing and safety protocols, quarantining and altered extracurricular activities.
He said despite all they lost, the students focused on moving forward. This was also the class that entered LHS when Koulentes took on the role as its principal. He said this made him feel connected to them.
“Though I never, ever want to go through another school year like the one we just experienced, if I ever have to, I would not want to go through it with any other senior class than you guys,” Koulentes said.
During his speech, Koulentes also took time to honor Alyssa Gillespie, an LHS student who died in 2017. She was named an honorary graduate. Koulentes also led the applause for the students who received various honors throughout their high school careers.
Graduate Amal Hasan spoke about challenges faced during the pandemic, comparing the struggles to those faced by the characters in the “Avengers” movie, which she said she watched a lot of with her two younger brothers while at home.
“Our senior year (was) a year full of redefinition, loss, gain, questioning, and growth,” she said. “We are a student body of brave and strong individuals, who, when the COVID-19 virus said ‘I’m inevitable,’ kept fighting and kept going. Even when it was just so easy to give up.”
Hasan also talked about the demand for change from her generation. She talked about the sacrifices made that will prepare her and her fellow students for the future.
“Learn, adapt and grow, and we will be prepared for the next sudden battle the world will be in,” she said.
This was something Koulentes hit on as well, saying this generation’s calling is to move off the status quo.
Superintendent Prentiss Lea, who is set to retire at the end of the month, also spoke at what will be his last graduation as head of the district. He gave thanks to those who helped organize the ceremony, as well as teachers and staff of the district.
“You are a very special class, and you are simply amazing,” he said to the graduates.
During his speech, Lea also recognized the class of 2020, which lost out on a formal graduation ceremony.
In their remarks, graduates Ben DeAcetis and Caitlin McCarty, who are also on the senior class board, also took time to thank all those who helped the class make it across the finish line.
“We are extremely fortunate to belong to such an inclusive community that puts a great importance on academics, athletics, fine arts, clubs and school spirit,” DeAcetis said.
