A Community That Made the Difference

by Kylie Mineiro, Class of 2026 Valedictorian, Eastside Catholic School

It is an honor to stand before you as one of the valedictorians for the Class of 2026. First, congratulations to my fellow valedictorians and salutatorians on your academic achievements. I also want to say that every one of us should be proud to have made it to graduation because burnout is real, and reaching this milestone is not always easy.

One of the most valuable things EC has given me is the opportunity to get to know my teachers through our smaller class sizes, so I want to take a moment to thank a few of them.

Thank you to Mr. Wurtz for putting up with me for three straight years and for opening my eyes to the field of physics.

Thank you to the entire English Department—to Dr. Bob, Mrs. Dingler, Dr. Wootton and Mrs. Snow. You all rock, and I've loved every English class I've taken.

Thank you to Mr. Fletcher and Ms. Hein for being incredible advisers for the Women in STEM Club, which I've been fortunate to lead this year.

Thank you to Sr. Granda for your work with the Spanish Honor Society and for inspiring me and so many other students to learn Spanish.

Finally, thank you to Mr. Harris for taking over the Cross Country program and for allowing me to serve as a teacher's assistant this year.

Truly, every teacher I've had has made a positive impact on me, so thank you to all the teachers here for everything you do.

Lastly, thank you to my family for supporting me and always believing in me, even when I didn't always believe in myself.

Congratulations again to everyone, and thank you once again for this honor.