Sunday, June 24, 2012 THE DALLAS POST PAGE 3 DALLAS HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION / BILL TARUTIS PHOTOS/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Sunglasses were the order of the day for Dallas High School seniors entering Mountaineer Stadium for the school’s 51st annual commencement. It was a difficult Cdl By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Students reflected upon a diffi- cult year while relishing in being the first class to graduate from the new high school at the Dallas School District’s 51st commence- ment ceremony on June 15 at Mountaineer Stadium. Class President Sara Flaherty told the audience that graduation is more than just accepting a piece of paper known as a diplo- ma. “Together, we have grown from naive children to young men and women of experience and knowledge,” she said. “We have learned from each other to laugh, love, grow and succeed. We have learned to deal with the roughest of times and we have learned that, even in devastation, there is always a shoulder to lean on.” Flaherty said students should keep that reality in mind during the ceremony and recognized all the experiences the students have shared throughout the years. She also reflected on the class’s experience in the new high school, which opened at the start of the 2011-12 school year. “The last year of high school is exciting in itself, but this year we have had the privilege of experi- encing our last year in a brand new school,” she said. “New classrooms to learn in, new tech- nology to allow us to excel, new policies to better our safety and new facilities to give outstanding opportunities in extra-curricular activities.” Flaherty thanked the school board and administrators for their leadership, faculty and teachers for knowledge and guid- bi Fi i Dallas High School Class of 2012 salutatorian Somiah Almeky, left, valedictorian Angelina Hoidra and third-highest honor gradu- ate Deep Patel. ie Rebecca Stull sings the national anthem at the Dallas High School commencement ceremony. GRADUATION AWARDS For a list of Dallas High School graduate awards, log onto www.mydallaspost.com. ance and families for their sup- port and roles as “the backstage crew.” The graduation featured a trib- ute to Thomas Lynch by his friends, Amanda Kotch, Chelsea Martin, Elizabeth Hoover and Andrew Santora. Lynch died in a vehicle crash in February. “Tom was the type of person that once you met him, you could never forget him,” said Kotch. “His smile was truly contagious. Tom was always happy and al- ways had the same goofy smile on his face. Whether he was running the halls of the school in a gorilla suit or wearing his infamous tie- dye pants with the big hole in the right knee, or just cracking one of his endless jokes, Tom always knew how to make people laugh and found genuine joy in making people smile.” Kotch said Lynch was involved in Boy Scout Troop 281 and lived his life to the Scout oath. “Tom lived the Scout law every day, always trying to help people whenever he could lend a hand,” she said. Kotch said Lynch became an Eagle Scout on his 18th birthday in December, and then followed his dream to become a member of the U.S. military. He signed on See DIFFICULT, Page 8 LAKE-LEHMAN HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION Anxious to move forward By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Lake-Lehman graduates were fidgeting with their robes before they even sat down for the high school’s 54th annual commence- ment on June 13. The 144 young men and wom- en seemed anxious to start on the path to adulthood, even be- fore speakers addressed the crowd. Student speakers reflected on the accomplishments of the class and asked their classmates not to focus on their mistakes of the past but the potential of their futures. Though Class President Ke- vin Katchko Jr. started his speech with a tongue-in-cheek quote from comedy writer Rob- ert Orben about the lack of indi- viduality at graduation ceremo- nies, Katchko said the idea is “truly a key to success.” “Individuality shows that each person has a little some- thing that makes them different from the person sitting next to them,” he told his classmates. He congratulated the class on all of its accomplishments, from sports achievements to the un- precedented senior Christmas program to raising $50,184 for charity through senior projects — the highest total the school has ever seen for such endeav- ors. “This class contains amazing, motivated students, hungry for what the world will bring to them in the future,” said Katch- ko. “No matter what the future will bring, and I'm sure it will bring many struggles, this class will be ready.” He thanked teachers and par- ents who supported the class throughout its 13 years in the Lake-Lehman High School Class of 2012 salutatorian Kristen BILL TARUTIS PHOTOS/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Members of the Lake-Lehman High School Class of 2012 applaud after the national anthem. Dicton Boyle delivers her commencement address. Lake-Lehman High School seniors enter Edward Edwards Stadi- um for the school's 54th annual commencement. LAKE-LEHMAN GRADUATION AWARDS Red Jones Leadership Awards Kristen Boyle and Kevin Katchko Citizenship Awards Lindsey Bennett and Matthew Gorski James L. Nicholas Memorial Scholarship Taryn Talacka school system. Though he said it was chal- lenging to find the right words to use in addressing his class for the last time, he managed to find one word that encompassed all he wanted to say. “I believe this class fits the de- scription of a few words really well. The words include won- derful, first-rate, notable, re- markable, exceptionally out- standing and distinguished,” he said. “Does this class not model the ones just listed? .... These words all fall under the defini- tion of the word ‘great.” Student Council Co-President Rachel Holena told her fellow seniors to respect their past but not to let it determine their fu- ture. She asked her classmates to learn from their mistakes, as she did when she was younger. Holena said she and her brothers loved to climb in the McDonald’s Play Place when they were younger and never wanted to leave, but their moth- er would refuse to take them back if they didn’t listen to her See ANXIOUS, Page 8 LAKE-LEHMAN SCHOOL DISTRICT New budget includes daycare center, decreased health costs In a 5-4 vote, board members Andrew Salko, James Welby, Ri- chard Bombick, Walter Glogowski and Kevin Carey voted for the budget while Mark Kornoski, Bo Kreller, Karen Masters and David Paulauskas voted against the measure. By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com ~ The Lake-Lehman School Board narrowly approved the budget for the 2012-13 school year, which includes funds to de- velop a district-run daycare cen- ter, decreased health care costs for teachers and other spending strategies. In a 54 vote, board members Andrew Salko, James Welby, Ri- chard Bombick, Walter Glogow- ski and Kevin Carey voted for the budget while Mark Kornoski, Bo Kreller, Karen Masters and David Paulauskas voted against the measure. The $26.8 million spendin plan raises taxes to 9.27 mills, a 4.26 percent increase for Luzerne County taxpayers within the dis- trict. A mill is $1 for every $1,000 in assessed property value. The plan has $25.4 in revenues, leaving an approximately $730,000 deficit to be offset by the district fund balance, which is akin to a savings account. This translates to an additional $56.81 per year for the average as- sessed property value of $150,000 in Harveys Lake Borough and Jackson, Lake, Lehman and Ross townships. Residents in Noxen Township in Wyoming County will actually see a decrease in their tax bills due to district reba- lancin, ing,” said resident Todd DeRosa. One item at the peak of discus- Kornoski said he couldn’t vote for the budget after the board vot- ed to offer teachers a 2.6 percent pay increase for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 school years at a special meeting on June 15. The district did manage to save money on health care as planned. Superintendent James McGov- ern said the district had planned to seek health care outside the Northeastern Pennsylvania School Health Trust but remain in its vision and dental programs. The tw: files came tl gree- ment after the trust filed a lawsuit against the district. “We will receive the benefits we proposed but it will be through the health trust,” said McGovern. He also said the district still in- tends to withdraw from the health trust by June 2013, and that will not affect teachers’ con- tracts in the future. Residents expressed concern over the district’s financial future after a presentation by business manager Tom Melone. ok “These numbers are terrify- sion was the district’s proposal to renovate a portion of Lehman- Jackson Elementary to make way for a daycare facility staffed by Hildebrandt Learning Center em- ployees. McGovern said $100,000 has been budgeted to determine whether the plan is feasible as an alternative revenue source for the schools. Residents questioned why the district partnered with a child- care facility from outside the dis- trict. “You're eliminating small busi- nesses from this area,” said resi- dent Gail Ide. guaranteed profit from the center after rates are established and he said the center would run along- side other childcare facilities in the area, not compete with them. The board also appointed five counselors for the district’s sum- mer camp program, one of which is Barbara Paulauskas, wife of board member David Paulauskas. Paulauskas abstained from the vote and Bombick voted against the measure. McGovern said five positions were open and the district re- ceived 17 applications for the po- sitions. The board also accepted the re- signation of head baseball coach See BUDGET, Page 12 fh HBP BOL,
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