Robinson Secondary School pumps pride through the thousands of students who walk its halls each day, and the class of 2007 felt it at their commencement ceremony, Friday, June 15.
More than 700 graduates waited for the moment to toss their caps into the air as thousands of parents, friends, guests and faculty watched on from the stands at George Mason University’s Patriot Center. It was time for the Robinson seniors to move on.
And moving on doesn’t necessarily come easy. Students are about to move out, move on and move up. Some will attend college, while others will enter the work force or the military. Some will become parents right away, while some will travel the world and try to find themselves. One piece of advice that is valuable to all graduating seniors is to manage debt, said Bill Strauss, co-founder and producer of Capital Steps and the Robinson commencement guest speaker. Accumulating student debt is interfering with education and life after college, he said, so it’s important for graduating seniors to take charge of their finances as early as possible.
"Make sure you can manage debt," said Strauss. "Be able to do whatever you want, regardless of your family’s economic background."
The senior class’ entire generation is learning a lot more than what previous generations seemed to have learned, said Strauss. He remembered a survey conducted when his generation was in school. The survey sought to determine what percentage of young adults were hippies — a label he said was associated with free love and heavy substance abuse. The results, he said, were about one in every eight.
He said that statistics today show how connected students are, however, with declines in binge drinking, drunk driving, teen pregnancy and abortion, and crime. Strauss said SAT scores are also continuously rising, and there are now the highest percentage of young people going on to college than ever before in this country.
"You are the smartest generation in history, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise," said Strauss.
The seniors’ age bracket also volunteers more than any other does, he said. Also, women are now a majority in American colleges and universities.
"You are the triumph of feminism," said Strauss.
All of these accomplishments are what make Robinson’s seniors ready to enter a globalized world, he said, as long as they seek out creativity in their lives and professions, and never give up. And, since today’s high school graduates are tomorrow’s leaders, Strauss said it’s important that everyone vote.
"In the 2020s, you’ll be forming families; in the 2040s, you’ll be leading the world," he said. "I’m looking forward to your generation being more politically active and outspoken than young people have been in the last 20 years."
Principal Daniel Meier told the seniors to also never give up on their Robinson pride. Meier said school spirit at Robinson is some of the highest he’s seen, and he proved it by pointing out that 20 faculty members are Robinson alumni.
"I’ve never worked in a school where the students, faculty and parents are so proud of their school," said Meier.
Based on the student speech at the ceremony, Meier is right. Kelsey Dodd, senior class president, said students have learned valuable life lessons at Robinson, and they’re grateful. They’ve also leaned that simple things, like a smile, can be priceless, said Dodd.
"All I really need to know, I learned at Robinson," she said.