The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Morgan School graduates 131 students
CLINTON — As the 131 graduates of The Morgan School celebrated Wednesday evening, surrounded by family, friends and peers, they were reminded to remember Clinton and their Morgan family as they moved onto the next phase of their lives.
Class president Wyatt Reu talked about the uniqueness of this graduating class.
“We are the only graduating class that has spent an equal amount of time in both the new and the old Morgan School,” he said. “I think this fact is not just a ... triviality, but is reflective of who we are as a class.”
Reu was referencing the new $64.7 million high school, which opened for the 2016-17 school year north of the
“I think our class is the bearer of the figurative torch.”
Wyatt Reu, class president, The Morgan School
original Killingworth Turnpike high school.
He said this has given the class of 2018 a strength, a perfect balance.
“I think our class is the bearer of the figurative torch,” he added. “We were faced with a unique challenge of adapting to a new Morgan environment, and I believe that this character of the old Morgan, a sense of history, community, idiosyncrasy, has been carried through us and has populated this new building with the same sense of character and love.
“Our class is filled with incredible talent, ambition and virtue,” he added. “To say that our future is bright is an understatement.”
It is this future that valedictorian Kaitlyn Maurais focused on when quoting from Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken.”
“Like Frost, as high school seniors, we have been offered various opportunities, various paths we might take in life, and, just like Frost, multiple paths may seem inviting, even though we can’t see exactly where they lead,” she said.
Maurais encouraged her peers not to forget those people who helped along the way.
“Though graduation marks a time for us to go our separate ways, it’s important to remember we are never alone in making these difficult choices,” she said. “Whether it be our parents, a close relative or friend, special teacher or coach or a mentor at work, we all have people that we can count on for support, encouragement and guidance. “Our identity is supported by a strong foundation, like a tree with a sturdy set of roots, keeping its hand straight and tall, our experiences at Morgan are our common roots.”
Brett Martin, student representative of the Board of Education, conceded that the changes and uncertainty ahead can seem daunting.
“As seniors, these last two years were a trying period for all of us,” he said. “We spent our whole lives to this point going with the flow, our decisions already made for us and our lives pretty much crafted outside of our control.
“But, we are now faced with the first and possibly the greatest decision of our lives, deciding what to do after high school and what to make of ourselves — where do we go, what do we do, what do we want to become?” he added.
“I, for one, was afraid,” he continued. “What if I made the wrong choice and wound up in a position that I would regret? I was worried, like we all are, about screwing up my first big decision of my life.”
For all graduates, whether resolute in their decision about their futures or still with trepidation, Erica Gelven, Board of Education chairwoman, urged the students not to forget where they came from, no matter how far their journey takes them. She asked the students to always remember the many things that made their time at Morgan special.
“Remember homecoming, as Clinton will always be your home, no matter how far away your life takes you,” she said. “Carry us with you, as we will carry you with us from this day forward.
“You are fortunate to live in a community that is invested in your success,” she added. “We are invested in you living the lives that you envision for yourselves.”