8th graders, You “Made” It – A “Graduation Speech”

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The theme for this year’s 8th grade Farewell Celebration is “We Have Perfect Vision for the Future.” Our vision at BCS is to “inspire students to lead in the global community through a passion for learning, innovating, and inquiry & design.” To help you live into that “perfect vision o the future,” we want you to be critical thinkers and problem solvers, inquire and design, and create solutions for the problems/opportunities you end up “finding”.  In short, we have wanted you to “make” things, tangible or intangible.  Well, in three short words…

  • You made it!
  • You “made” the transition to BCS to a very different school than your previous one.
  • You “made” great friends at BCS.
  • You “made” efforts to work hard and to do your best.
  • You “made” it to the end of your 8th grade year.

Many of you in Engage have ended this year with your “Make Project”. You’ve spent time submitting a proposal to your teacher to “make” something.  With that theme of “Make” in mind, as well as the three short words “You Made It”, as you move forward into high school…

  • “Make” the transition to high school a great one!
  • “Make” more great friends!
  • “Make” even greater efforts in high school to do your best!
  • “Make” each day, week, year count!
  • “Make” it to your senior year proud of what you’ve experienced and accomplished!

And most importantly thinking beyond high school, my sincere hope for each of you is to “make” a successful life…

  • “Make” happiness and a positive attitude part of your everyday life…
  • “Make” honesty & integrity, respect & kindness, and responsibility & accountability the lifeskills by which you live …
  • “Make” a powerfully positive difference in the lives of others…
  • “Make” your goals and dreams a reality…
  • “Make” more of your life than you ever imagined…
  • “Make” your life a great one!

To sum it up, let me leave you with the words of American poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson, as my ultimate hope for you in having a “perfect vision” and making a successful live…

To laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.

 

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