Being
that this is my first year as principal of St. Pius X, and as I was deciding
what to say this evening, I felt that I should tell you all a little bit about
myself, because my past greatly influenced this speech. I started my career 22 years ago, as a middle
school Science teacher and spent my formative years teaching fourth grade. My favorite subject to teach was Indiana
History. As you already know, we just
celebrated the 100th running of the Greatest Spectacle in racing and
in December we celebrate the 200th Anniversary of our great
state. So what better way to celebrate
your final event as a St. Pius student, than relate it to the State of Indiana,
for you are now a part of history.
Indiana
is divided into three distinct regions, the northern part of the state is the
Lakes and Moraines(for those that don’t know what a Moraine is, it is a
glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris, trust me I had
to look that up myself). As we travel
south, you enter into the central till and plains, and then finally end in the
southern hills and lowlands. How does
this relate to me, you might ask… Allow me to explain…
You
see, when you started your education as kindergarteners, you left the
comfortable home environment, to go to school.
It was like your parents threw you into the lake, to swim and learn to
survive. Trust me, for your parents it
was equally as eventful, except they had to climb over the rocky soil created
by the moraines. Low and behold, before
we knew it, parents were mastering the rocky soil and you were learning to
swim. Each of you became better,
stronger and more independent. You
learned everything you needed to know in Kindergarten and first grade and by
the time second grade came around, you were master students.
From
here you each moved to middle grades three through six. Much like the central till and plains is the
center of the state, you are now at the center part of your education. Because of your knowledge, this part of the
state, and your educational journey is
rather flat and easy to navigate, but it takes hard work and perseverance to
get the land where you want it, and so the hard work and perseverance got you
to middle school.
Now
we move into the southern hills and lowlands.
What better way to compare middle school then with the ups and downs,
and the highs and lows of the southern part of our state.
The
workload gets more difficult and well, just more. You get a new principal and have to learn a
different way of doing everything, some of your life long school friends are
going to a different high school. All
which might feel like you are traveling in the lowland parts.
Then
there is the Washington DC trip, winning the Hawks in the Hall basketball
tournament, preparing to graduate, all of which have you reaching to top of the
hills and now can see so far into the future.
It is like you are on top of the world.
As
you leave St. Pius X and head to your high school, you have been prepared both
academically and prepared to handle the ups and downs you will face in high
school and beyond. You will have to
adjust to a new school, a new schedule, and a whole new set of rules, much like
you had to adjust to a new principal.
Know that if you can handle the ups and downs of the southern hills and
lowlands, also known as middle school, you can do anything. Whether the road is winding and curvy, hilly
or flat, your knowledge is strong, and your faith is stronger. All of which will allow you accomplish
anything you put your mind to.
Before
I finish, I would like to thank the parents for making this commitment to our
children and our Church. Your commitment
to send your children to St. Pius all but ensures the growth of our parish and
the larger church. Our children’s
success happens because of your commitment and working together to make sure
your children succeed.
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