89 percent of the graduates will be attending college in the fall.
MONTAGUE – Valedictorian Erin K. Casey and salutatorian Taylor E. Varilly were among the 59 Turners Falls High School members of the Class of 2011 who received their diplomas Friday.
Eighty-nine percent of the graduates will be attending college in the fall.
Awards and scholarships were presented at a separate event Thursday.
In an interview before the graduation, Principal Donna M. Fitzpatrick said “one of the things that defines” the graduating class is the many “bright students in the class.”
She said they are hard working and have “made Turners Falls High School a better place by their participation in different activities” like athletics, the arts and the annual Unity Day celebration.
Fitzpatrick also commented on the “amount and level” of community service members of the class performed. “They have done outstanding community service in a variety of venues,” she said, noting work with children being treated for cancer and for the Family Inn homeless shelter in Greenfield.
She also lauded the Montague Local Aquatics Program for Personal Safety (LAPPS) program to teach area children how to swim and about water safety. It was founded by a Turners Falls High School student five years ago and has involved scores of students since.
Fitzpatrick said she hopes the members of the Turners Falls High School Class of 2011 will be as successful “out in the large world” as they have been in high school. “We are a small school, and somewhat sheltered. When you get out into the world it can be overwhelming.”