News Photo by Temi Fadayomi Selah Baldwin, one of three of Alcona High School valedictorians, speaks to her classmates and other attendants of the Alcona High graduation ceremony held in the high school auditorium on Friday.

LINCOLN — On Friday night, 70 seniors from Alcona High School’s Class of 2024 concluded their four-year high school journey as they gathered for graduation.

The school’s auditorium could barely contain the friends, family, and other individuals who came to support the students as they completed the milestone.

Before taking their final steps as high school students, the graduates were given some advice and words of encouragement from school district administrators and fellow classmates.

Alcona Middle and High School Principal Christie Thomas commended the graduates for making it to the end of their school journey and wished them luck as they embark on their next one.

“There is a realization that your time as an Alcona student is in the past,” Thomas said. “With the ending of one chapter of life there begins another, and with it comes a sense of hope and possibility. Make the most of your new chapter. Whether you are heading off to college, into the military, or directly into the workforce is up to you.”

Next, some of the seniors took to the podium to speak to their classmates about the significance of the moment, as well as to reflect on the journey that all of them have embarked upon together.

Selah Baldwin, one of the school’s three valedictorians, reminisced about their time as Alcona students, from first entering high school as freshmen to now.

“We all started as freshmen wondering how the next four years were going to go,” Baldwin said. “Fast-forward, and here we are wondering where it all went and trying to make sense of everything we’ve been through. All the accomplishments we’ve made throughout high school, the struggles, and the fun experience that truly made us grow as students and as adults.”

The students paid tribute to their academic achievements, sports accomplishments, and other moments throughout high school before each of them was finally called up to receive their diplomas.