Graduation Day

"Imagine going to a school; a school that is small but safe; a school where everybody knows everyone; where peer and friend mean the same thing. Imagine going to a school where you're not just a number, but a priority; a school where you are loved; where you consider your teachers and classmates, coaches and teammates to be a second family, and school your second home. This is Lincoln Public School."

With those words Jenna Templeton opened her valedictory address at Lincoln's 2022 high school graduation ceremony, expressing the central role the school plays in the lives of its students and staff.

Templeton, the daughter of School librarian and Gifted and Talented program coordinator Joanie Templeton, said she has witnessed first-hand the work and time that teachers and staff members dedicated to their students.

"We do not make your work easy, but I thank you for devoting your lives to your students. We would not be here today, and I certainly would not be who I am, without each and every one of you.," she said.

Templeton thanked the crowd for being there as they take their first steps into adult hood. "We are so fortunate to have not only a supportive school, but a community behind us. There are a lot of people who have invested a lot of time and energy into making us the mature - well, mostly mature - adults seated before you," she said.

Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton, this year's commencement speaker, marked a departure from speakers in past years, who have usually been local members of the community or school staff.

Originally from Sand Springs, a town even smaller than Lincoln, Dutton related his own experiences as a not-very-motivated high school student who didn't have much belief in himself and who, as a junior, received an award for "most likely to fail."

His senior year he met a girl who believed in him. "I began to pay more attention in school... I began to study , I began to work on those things. I shocked my Dad by getting on the honor roll."

Dutton talked about how he turned things around in his life, and offered an bit of wisdom to the students. "I'm gonna say this: the world does not owe you a thing. You're gonna have to work for it. The people who do good in life do not think the world owes them anything. They're going to go out and make it their own."

He urged them to remember that someone sacrificed so they could have what they couldn't afford and to help them along the way in life.

"This is called a sense of duty . the people here in Lincoln have a sense of duty that's called giving back. I challenge you to do this: go see the world while you're young. Learn how to be an entrepreneur. Learn skills if you can, bring that business back to Lincoln. Bring that vitality, bring that ingenuity back to Lincoln."