St. Joe’s students turn tassels

School: St. Joseph’s Catholic Academy

Class: 2017

Number of graduates: 19

Graduation location: Pasquerilla Spiritual Center at Penn State

Colors: The boys wore blue gowns with matching caps; the girls wore white gowns with white caps. All students had a yellow tassel dangling from their caps with a gold 2017 medallion. School colors are blue and orange.

Student speakers: Anna Henderson and Audrey Thomas. The senior class voted on two of the top-five academic students in the class to be selected as speakers.

Keynote speaker: The Rev. Malachi Van Tassell, president of St. Francis University

Principal: Christopher Chirieleison

Graduation moment: Saturday morning’s graduation marked the school’s fourth since its inception.

Best high school memories: Graduates Nathaniel Mellott, Ann-Marie Pase and Nick Shearer each said they’ll miss Food Service manager Sharon Crain’s school lunches. The students said lunches were served “family style,” and their favorite meal was turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes and all the fixings.

Tips for underclassmen: Mellott, who will be attending Ohio University in the fall, said the best advice he has for underclassmen is to have fun. “Don’t forget to really enjoy it, because it goes by fast,” he said. “And don’t be afraid to meet people and make new friends.” Fellow graduate, Pase, who will be attending Coastal Carolina University next school year, told future graduates to “remember to wear comfortable shoes” at graduation. Shearer, who will attend the University of Dayton, said he encourages students to get involved in as many activities as possible. “I played three sports and was involved in a lot of other activities, and it’s a lot of work, but totally worth it,” he said.

This story was originally published May 20, 2017 at 6:51 PM with the headline "St. Joe’s students turn tassels."