Finally, we made it to graduation.  It has taken a lot of work and we all have all overcome many challenges to get here, and those challenges tested our limits and helped us figure out who we are.  The quote that I used for my senior project was by Blaise Pascal: We must learn our limits.  We are all something, but none of us are everything.  This quote means a lot to me because that is probably one of the most important things I learned at AMES; however I didn’t do that alone.  I had the help of my friends, the AMES faculty and my family to help me test my limits and figure out the something that I am.  High school is a time of challenges and change, and those challenges are what help us define ourselves.

When I think about that quote, I remember the first year at AMES, when no one knew where to go or what to do.  The teachers were just as lost as the students.   That was a time where we all had to work together to make our school a success.  That first year, we lost a lot of peers because they gave up.  The people here today are the ones that didn’t give up.  We are the ones that worked together and made AMES what it is today.  I am so lucky to have gone to school with students who are so accepting, supportive and willing to face a challenge.

What makes AMES so different from other high schools besides the students is the faculty.  I came from a junior high where the teachers really didn’t care whether or not you succeeded.  Of course every teacher wants their students to do well, but only if it’s on their terms.  At AMES, the teachers do whatever it takes to help the students succeed.  That doesn’t mean the classes were any easier!  My teachers challenged me and pushed me further than anyone ever has, but they were there to help me. 
 
Of course, like everyone else, my family has played a huge role in my education.  I remember Ms. Hadden telling us over and over that there is a huge difference between hearing “if you go to college” and “when you go to college,” and I realize how true that is.  I am lucky because I have always heard “when you go to college,” but for those who didn’t, I know you heard it over and over at AMES, which has become like a family.  My parents have always taught me that there is no limit to what I can achieve.  I have learned that I have my own limits, but I can overcome those with help from all the amazing people around me. 

Graduating high school is one of the biggest accomplishments of our lives and we need to celebrate and be proud!  We can accomplish anything if we constantly test our limits and ask for help whenever we need it.  I want to wish everyone luck with whatever they choose to do after today! Thanks guys!  I’ll miss you!