The school’s third graduating class will take center stage to receive their diplomas Friday, June 6 after nearly 13 school years of hard work.

“[It’s] relieving, I have waited so long for this and time is going by so fast,” senior Jordyn Carpenter said. “I just can’t wait.”

The ceremony will take place Friday at 7 p.m. at the Cedar Park Center. DVDs of graduation are available from the RNN staff for $20. Parents can order online or at graduation. For more info, click this link to the DVD story.

The graduation site was a source of concern for a few days after the district learned the Texas Stars might need the arena for a playoff game. The tentative backup site was Gupton Stadium, an outdoor facility. On Tuesday, June 3, the district learned the Texas Stars would play in the Calder Cup Finals on Sunday and graduation could proceed as planned at the Cedar Park Center.

“I’m somewhat looking forward to it because I have family I haven’t seen very often coming up,” senior Taylor Keller said. “But I’m terrified that they’re going to do something to embarrass me like they usually do and then I’m gonna laugh when they get kicked out for doing it, but I’m really nervous that I’m going to trip and fall off the stage like my usual bouts of clumsiness.”

As veterans of high school and the legendary senioritis, this year’s graduates have some suggestions for the underclassmen.

“My advice is if you know that you can do quality work in a short amount of time, there’s no reason to sweat it,” senior Ashton Evans said. “Stress makes it lower quality in my opinion.”

While it has only been four years, their journeys through the halls of high school have taught them many life lessons that they will carry with them into their adult lives.

“I learned that you really got to work your way through all of this because in high school I’ve had more drama in these four years than the other 14 years of my life,” Keller said. “And you have to realize that as you get older more stuff is going to come your way and more crud is going to drag you down so you’re going to have to learn to work through your problems and learn to face things head on.”