'Change' graduation theme
BUTLER TWP — Butler High School graduated the first class after the district's school consolidation with the fitting theme of: “The only constant is change.”
The 525 members of the Class of 2016 graduated Tuesday night at Art Bernardi Stadium at the high school.
It seems that humor may be a good coping mechanism for change, judging by the comedic timing of many student speeches.
Dominic Noel, a senior honor student, peppered his speech with a reference from Disney's “High School Musical” and made many a bald joke at the expense of retiring principal Jeff Schnur.
“There will be as few bald jokes as there are hairs on his head,” Noel said.
But humor is not the only thing the Butler students have going for them; this year's graduates include students who will attend the U.S. Military Academy and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Anchor Losch, a senior in the JROTC program at Butler, will attend the U.S. Military Academy in the fall, hopefully becoming a military doctor, she said.
For her, with two parents who went to the Merchant Marine Academy and were in the Navy, going into the armed forces was a choice that came easily.
“Serving in the military has been my dream my entire life,” Losch said. “I just want to serve my country.”
After applying to all five military academies, Losch knew U.S. Military Academy was right for her after she went to summer camp there in 2015. One of the days is meant to mimic the first day of being a cadet at the school, what Losch nonchalantly described as, “You basically get yelled at for four hours, it's nothing major.”
Ultimately, Losch is excited for the experiences and challenges that await her, she said.
“Being a part of that (family) is really exciting, so humbling,” she said. “I'm still shocked that I got accepted. I'm just so lucky that I was accepted to it.”
For senior Darius Bopp the future holds some exciting adventures in Cambridge, Mass., where he plans to major in computer science at MIT.
Of course, that might not be enough of a challenge, so Bopp said, “I might add on applied math. MIT is pretty open about being able to switch between studies. The plan is to work on something with computers, but once I get there, things may change.”
Bopp hopes to keep up his passion for music while at MIT, even though he does not foresee a career in music. Bopp believes, in fact, it's his unique musical abilities that might have set him apart on his applications — being able to play eight instruments can do that.
“I started on piano when I was 5 years old, and that was a lot of fun,” he said. He then became “enthralled” with jazz music.
Over the years, he picked up other instruments and now can play the clarinet, bass clarinet, flute, piano, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone and baritone saxophone.But Bopp is not worried about all of the work and changes he will need to weather in Cambridge.“I'm excited. I'm not sad,” he said. “I think it is time to move on. I've had a great career here, a lot of fun. I'm not in a hurry to leave, but at the same time, it's exciting to move on to a different place and explore something new.”Another change a Butler student had to deal with is being in a wheelchair for graduation, something Tiana Schaffner never expected.About a month ago, Schaffner was in an accident, having slipped on a rock at McConnells Mill and falling about 25 feet. She shattered her left elbow, shattered her pelvis, disconnected her spine and pelvis and collapsed a lung, she said.But that didn't keep her spirits down on Tuesday evening, and she thinks she'll be back on her feet in about a month, she said.This fall, Schaffner will attend Butler County Community College for an associate degree in general studies. Schaffner said she has no idea what she wants to do with her life, but she's not worried now.“I'll figure it out eventually,” she said.On the other hand, there's one student who knows exactly what she wants to do, senior Karyssa Merriles. Previously from California, Merriles has a specific plan.She will attend BC3 in the fall to get her associate degree in general studies and then transfer to the University of Pittsburgh to major in history.All of this is in an effort for Merriles to become an archivist, focusing on ancient Egypt. As an archivist, Merriles would be responsible for cleaning and studying ancient pieces, even traveling to collect different pieces.While Merriles is not sure how many job opportunities exist for Egypt-focused archivists in the area, she is determined to succeed, she said.But, fitting with the theme of the year, the graduates have no problem adjusting to change, according to senior AnnMarie Lowerre, an honor student.“We all know how to handle change with maturity, class and confidence,” she said.
