CCH valedictorians celebrate working through tough year

By Herald on May 21, 2021.

Janelle Wipf, Isabella Umeris, Joshua Kroker and Alyssa D'Agnone have been named the four valedictorians for the Catholic Central graduating class. Herald photo by Dale Woodard

Dale Woodard – Lethbridge Herald

Through a tough past year, the students of Catholic Central worked together.

So it’s fitting that Janelle Wipf, Isabella Umeris, Joshua Kroker and Alyssa D’Agnone will work alongside each other one more time, this time as class valedictorians.

The four students were announced as this year’s graduating class valedictorians at an outdoor ceremony Friday afternoon in a grand unveiling as the foursome – socially distanced and in masks – walked through the CCH West parking lot, introduced via megaphone by principal Joanne Polec to an applauding crowd.

After working together through their high school years, Kroker, 18, noted it was fitting he would share the valedictorian duties with his three classmates.

“It’s amazing because I’ve worked with them for about three years now and we’ve all tried to do what we can to help each other succeed,” he said. “With Alyssa I did social projects, math with Isabella and student council with Janelle. We have all these connections that bring us together even further and it’s been amazing to celebrate with them. This is what the community is all about, that Cougar blue pride.”

Kroker also tipped his grad cap to the teachers at CCH who fielded an endless barrage of questions from the students over the past year.

“It was good, it paid off even though it may have seemed too redundant at the time. We put our work in, we’re here today and we’ve succeeded. So we’re grateful for that. Also, to our families for pushing us every single day.”

After many pictures from the parents and classmates alike, Wipf said she was expecting Friday’s valedictorian announcement in the parking lot, but was excited to see she would be sharing the honour with three of her classmates.

“I think it’s really representative of this year, especially with all of the challenges we’ve had to overcome,” said the 18-year-old student. “I think it’s a really nice sentiment we all get to do our grad statements together.”

And they do so after a tough year dealing with a pandemic that threw their school schedule for a loop.

“It’s definitely been challenging, shifting from online to back in classes,” said Wipf. “Our learning has definitely shifted a lot, but I think with the teamwork of our classmates and our teachers they’ve made it the best they can for us.”

Umeris, also 18, also noted the valedictorian duties she’ll get to carry out alongside her classmates.

“It’s really nice. I know everybody here has worked really hard for this. We’re all academic-athletic and we’ve all done our best this year.”

Making the switch from in-school to online learning and back again was challenging, said Umeris.

“But we’re all academic at heart and we just know to work our hardest and it’ll pull through and we’ll be rewarded at the end.”

D’Agnone, 17, noted the vast backgrounds each of the valedictorians will bring to this year’s ceremony.

“I think it’s really cool how we all bring something different to the table, whether it’s athletics, fine arts or student council,” she said. “The teachers obviously helped a lot, going from in-school to online. Having the other students to help get through it, they’re always thinking positively.”

Catholic Central principal Joanne Polec said CCH’s graduation ceremonies will go June 11 and 12.

“This is a big grad class, 320 of them,” she said. “So we’re waiting for the RSVP’s to come in and then we’ll start clustering them into groups of about 78 per group. Each ceremony will have its own opening, its own address and then we’ll present convocation boxes to all the graduates.”

The ceremonies will start with a mass June 11 and will be live streamed with only 15 individuals allowed in the church at a time.

On June 12, four mini-ceremonies will be held with each of the valedictorians speaking at one.

“Every year there’s a formula for valedictorian at Catholic Central and it does include a religious education because we are a faith-based school,” said Polec. “They have top-four other marks in english, social, french language arts and math and any of the sciences. From that they take the top averages over the five marks and determine the valedictorian from there.”

Oftentimes in a non-COVID year they have one standout, said Polec.

This year, there were four and it all added up.

“This year, this is a very academic class in general,” said Polec. “But the students being able to show us what they can really do without a standardized exam at the end of day, I don’t think we’ve ever had four 100s. It just fell into place. Four ceremonies, four top marks and a very diverse group, everything from our four pillars of academics, faith, fine arts and athletics. They all, in some way, shape or form, represent many of those pillars.”

The theme of this year’s graduation comes from the song “Have It All” by Jason Mraz.

“In there is a phrase (about) infinite possible ways,” said Polec. “We felt it reflected this class and all the different ways we’ve had to move, shift and pivot this year. We tied into that and it will give the four of them the opportunity to go in infinite possible ways with their speeches.”

Follow @DWoodardHerald on Twitter