La Jolla Country Day School will celebrate the graduations of its lower, middle and upper classes throughout the next week, beginning with the senior class on Friday, May 30 at 2 p.m.
This year’s 87 graduating seniors will attend commencement ceremonies at La Jolla Country Day School’s amphitheater. Brian Murphy, director of the Middle School, was chosen to give the benediction at the end of the ceremony and students chose Sarah Bakhiet, assistant head of school for academics, to give the commencement address.
“This class is one of those really dedicated classes,” Bakhiet said. “The seniors this year are really funny in a really sweet way. That’s the sort of theme that runs through the whole class.”
Although this is Bakhiet’s first year as an administrator, she taught at LJCDS for the past nine years. Bakhiet said since this year’s graduating class left the campus, something seems to be missing.
“I think everyone agrees that this class is an exemplary and exceptional class in several ways, and their teachers really like them. It’s a great group of kids and we’re really going to miss them,” Bakhiet said. “There’s a tangible void here on the campus.”
In addition to the administrative speakers, the graduating class chose two students to give speeches. Christian Pineda and Armando Yee are best friends who received scholarships to LJCDS. Pineda received a scholarship to New York University, while Yee will attend Pepperdine University.
Pineda, who grew up in Barrio Logan, said his mother inspired him to choose LJCDS in sixth grade. The Barrio Logan College Institute helped to fund his tuition to LJCDS, and the artistic graduate represented his school in a national Shakespearean competition, where he placed third.
“I’ve written two short plays this year and one full-length play and I directed them all,” Pineda said. “I’m going to submit my play to a playwriting competition. Hopefully that turns out well.”
Pineda wants to submit a play called “Faces” with three black-clad, white-faced characters staring at the audience “” they represent heaven, hell or earth, he said.
“It’s dark and gothic “¦ It’s a comedy, but it’s a cool story,” Pineda said.
According to Pineda, the seniors wrote a graduation speech instead of a senior project. His peers chose his speech.
Pineda’s best friend Yee wrote a speech he said is about the friendship that LJCDS students cherish. Yee’s peers also chose his speech.
“The students nominated several [speeches] from our class and I was the winner,” Yee said.
Yee traveled with other LJCDS students to Tanzania to visit some children the school sponsors, he said.
“It really was the trip of a lifetime,” Yee said. “It was 21 days; we did community service. We visited several schools and plus we got to go on a safari.”
Yee is known for his ability to make balloon animals, which he said he listed on his Pepperdine application.
According to Bakhiet, all the seniors this year support each other.
“They seem to respect one another,” Bakhiet said. “Their leadership is exemplary. It’s one of the best leadership teams I’ve seen in the nine years I’ve been here.
La Jolla Country Day’s Middle School will hold its graduation ceremony Wednesday, June 4 at 4 p.m., and the Lower School will graduate Tuesday, June 3 at 10 a.m. For information, call (858) 453-3440.