Class of 2025 rocks graduation

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, June 17, 2025

Vashon graduated 155 students of the class of 2025 on Saturday, June 14, rocking out at the end of their high school journey in the island’s annual graduation parade and ceremony.

Many of them rolled down Vashon Highway early that afternoon, throwing candy, squirting water guns and hanging off the sides of cars covered with green and gold decorations.

As they went, family and friends shouted and cheered, running into the street to hug or high-five them, dancing and taking photos and videos on their phones.

Voice of Vashon emcees Sabrina Kovacs, assistant principal of VHS, and Mary Marin, board member and show host for Voice of Vashon saluted and lovingly ribbed the seniors in front of Voice of Vashon’s Jean Bosch Broadcast Studio.

Near the tail of the parade, a band of graduates calling themselves WeezeLord rocked out to the sounds of Weezer’s debut self-titled album, turning those timeless sounds of youth angst, joy and nerdiness into an impromptu dance party in the middle of Vashon town.

Later that evening, during the ceremony at Vashon High School field, students from VHS, StudentLink and FamilyLink threw their caps in the air, the setting sun casting fleeting blue rays across the end of this chapter of their lives.

During the ceremony, class speaker Kyla Scheff remarked on how close the class of 2025 grew near the very end of their high school career.

“I hope that your hearts are full and that you are proud of yourselves for making it to this point,” said Scheff. “Now we are here, cap and gown, about to walk across this stage. … We are about to leave this island that we call home, but this time, it’s different. This island won’t be torn apart, and it’s not going to disappear. In fact, it will always be here for us. We can be safe in knowing that no matter how far we go, we will always have some place to call home.”

Musicians Rowan McBennett, Emma Meade, Eva Nelson, Connor Olsen and Sloane Overdorf performed Macklemore’s “Good Old Days,” and were then joined by Zydan Werner, Japhy Tsiatsenhoven and Ellisport Otto for a performance of “The Chain” by Fleetwood Mac.

Valedictorians Gracie Beggs-Ruegamer, Natalie Vickers, Haley Hopper, Rowan McBennett, Forest Macnab, Laurel Calhoun and salutatorian Kyla Scheff were honored for their academic achievements and each spoke briefly to the audience.

“What if, while pursuing personal happiness and prosperity, we also live by the seventh generation principle of the Iroquois nation?” McBennett asked. “Think about the impact of every action you take on the seventh generation to come after you. For our class, that would be around the class of 2200. For there to even be a class of 2200, every one of us must work to save our planet. We are coming of age in the most critical time humans have ever faced.”

High school Principal John Erickson highlighted the strength of student clubs promoting First Amendment rights to speech and religion, the school’s gender queer affinity group and honoring of Veterans Day, and the school community’s support of students with learning differences. And he noted, with laughter from the graduates and crowd, how this year’s seniors staged a lunchtime wedding ceremony — complete with a procession, cake, officiant and a dramatic objection to the union — for their senior prank.

“You’ve brought dedication to the classroom, brilliance to the stage, purpose to the causes you champion, care for our planet, the interdependence of our shared humanity, and an understanding of the privileges we share that guide a willingness to serve — not just this community, but the community of our entire planet,” Erickson said. “Vashon is not like the rest of the world … and I believe that is a good thing. Here we show up for each other. We make space for questions, for contradictions and for conscience.”

Erickson celebrated those graduates earning an Associate of Arts degree through participating in the running start program, and Assistant Principal Sabrina Kovacs honored 34 seniors who earned the Washington State Seal of Biliteracy, demonstrating their ability to speak more than one language.

Faculty speaker and history teacher Heather Miller gave a brief lesson on the history of Presidential commencement speeches, including Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s poorly-received, radio-broadcasted 1938 address to a West Virginia school which used the word “tax” 62 times. “Unsurprisingly, the speech was not well received … and was not particularly appropriate to his audience.”

Her speech, however, related directly to the graduates: “Coming back from teaching online, hybrid teaching, wearing masks and then getting pregnant, having a baby and going on maternity leave, I was no longer feeling the same spark and love that I always have for teaching,” Miller said. “I was starting to wonder if I needed to find another profession. I decided to do it one more year … And I feel so thankful that I had your class for my first full normal year back. You made me excited to come to the island every day to teach. You bought into every lesson and activity I tried, asked amazing questions, worked incredibly hard. … Your class reinvigorated my love of teaching, and you repeatedly pushed me to be a better teacher.”

Referencing the musical “Hamilton,” she concluded: “You’re at the edge of your future and everything is possible. You’re young, scrappy and hungry, and I know you won’t throw away your shot.”

School ASB advisor Jason Butler regaled the audience with “senior confessions” of his own — “I always had a Chromebook charger. I just never wanted to give it to you” — and admonished the graduates that buying spam musubi from Mom’s Deli only to resell it to classmates is “gross.”

He also introduced the winners of the Pieces of Eight — a tradition at the high school since 1983 honoring the character of eight graduates. Once again, each winner earned a sterling silver medallion produced by the school jewelry instructor Kate Dunagan. The honors, nominated by school administrators and staff, are for students who exhibit leadership, service, commitment, citizenship, integrity, engagement, inspiration and Pirate pride.

This year, the winners were Haley Hopper, Dashiell Henson, Raena Joyce, Yamama Almustafa, Rowan McBennett, Elouise Lawrence, Madeline Youman and Sloane Overdorf.

Also this year, the Vashon Community Scholarship Foundation awarded a total of $305,950 to 114 graduates — its biggest group of graduates ever.