By SALINA POST
Graduation for the Salina Central Class of 2023 included a collective poem by classmates and some fun prompted by a dancing guest speaker and former Salina mayor.
The graduation ceremony for the 2023 Mustangs was late Sunday afternoon in the arena at Tony's Pizza Events Center.
Riley Anderson, a member of the Salina Central Class of 2023, presented not a speech, but a collective poem of lines from 42 different classmates.
"I told them it did not have to rhyme. Just write the first thing that came to mind," he said. "Our theme is 'Farewell Childhood.'"
Salina Central's graduation speaker was Dr. Trent Davis, a neurosurgeon who has served as Salina's mayor and still serves on the Salina City Commission.
Davis started his speech with a bit of music and dancing, encouraging the Class of 2023 to stand and join him.
"You gotta have some fun, right?" Davis said to the Class of 2023. "Now, if a shy, two-left-footed, non-dancing, dance floor hazard like me dared himself to do this and pulled it off, risking eternal embarrassment to his kids, rest assured that each of you graduates can do anything that you set your mind to. As Henry Ford said, 'Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're probably right. In other words, your attitude will determine your success or failure."
Quoting the Roman philosopher Seneca and Thomas Jefferson talking about luck, Davis said the graduates, were lucky to have earned their high school diplomas.
"Not everyone in the world has been afforded your opportunities," he said. "For 13 fun, long years, the devoted teachers of USD 305 have prepared you for your upcoming opportunities by not just filling you with facts, but teaching you how to think. As a result, you are able to turn the 'how comes' that you will encounter in life into 'why nots.' Your 'why nots' stimulate learning that creates new realities."
Davis offered as an example a group of Salina high school students who two years ago forced the restructuring of the Salina Citizens Law Enforcement Advisory Board. The students, many of whom were too young to vote, organized into the Sunflower Coalition and questioned the status quo of citizen oversight of police-related complaints, Davis said.
"This coalition offered a better alternative that actually became the law. High school students who couldn't vote changed the law in the city. You're never too young or too old to make a difference," he said.
Davis also quoted a 20th Century poet who said that "education is not the filling of a bucket, but the lighting of a fire."
"For those of you going to college: be on fire. Don't just answer questions in class. Come up with new questions for which you must find the answer. For those of you devoting your life to social justice: be on fire. Keep your flame hot as you melt bigotry, hatred, resentment, poverty, and ignorance, as you create a lasting peace in the world. For those of you searching for your niche in life: be on fire in your readiness to meet the opportunity that's heading your way," Davis said. "For all we know the father or a mother of the next great industrial revolution might be sitting right here in this group."
Davis continued, "For those of you joining the military: be cool. Your quiet preparation is the deterrent for those who would cause destruction. However, should someone cross the line, be on fire as you defend this great country."
Davis then talked about the length of time it takes persons in various professions "to be really good at what they do."
"So as you leave Salina Central to show the world - and I gotta sing this - what a mighty, mighty Mustang can do, some advice. Let the light within you shine brighter than the light upon you. Don't depend on social media likes for your self-esteem. If attention and approval are your only goal, you are the tail, not the dog."
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To see the video of the graduation ceremony, click here.