Post updated at 10:11 a.m. Thursday, May 21:
Family and friends of 317 Lawrence High School graduates filled the stadium Wednesday evening, gathering to celebrate the Class of 2026 in a ceremony that balanced both achievement and grief.
Following the student procession, the ceremony paused for a moment of silence in honor of Principal Quentin Rials, who died unexpectedly earlier this week.
Rials, a 1995 Lawrence High graduate, was a beloved leader whose dream job was serving his alma mater and led with dignity, integrity, strength and compassion.
The ceremony also acknowledged three members of the Class of 2026 who died before they had the chance to graduate: Kamarjay Shaw, 14; Brianna Higgins, 15; and Isaiah Ferguson, 17.
Senior choir members performed the national anthem and alma mater before a land acknowledgment from senior Edward Roman Nose.
Superintendent Jeanice Swift reflected on the class’s resilience, pointing to both recent loss and the broader challenges students have faced.
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“I would say that you’ve been raised in the fire, and you are so strong,” Swift said.
Swift spoke not only to recent loss, but also a generation shaped by years of disruption following the pandemic and other challenges.
Graduates were also reminded they were joining a long tradition of Lawrence High alumni, a point speakers returned to as they encouraged students to carry forward the school’s sense of community.
“We’re in awe of your brilliant light. Go be the light. Go shine bright,” Swift said.
Building on themes of resilience and responsibility, senior Eli Cokelet, who plans to attend Northwestern University, focused his remarks on compassion in an increasingly divided world.
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“DJ Khaled once said that at the end of the day, life just has roadblocks, and life is like school, you’ll be tested, we just gotta pass it,” Cokelet said.
He urged his classmates not to ignore the struggles of others. Instead, it is their duty to overpower hate with compassion.
“The only way to fight the coldness of our world is with the warmth of mercy and of compassion,” Cokelet said.
School board President GR Gordon-Ross focused on the importance of connections and support systems, like those his own children found at Lawrence High School.
“They were able to find their people to support them and to allow them to be who they were, and to love them, and to care for them, and to help them grow into the people that they are today,” Gordon-Ross said.
Gordon-Ross said that strong support systems — the people who uplift, challenge and listen — can make a powerful difference in one’s life, and that he hopes all graduates have found, or will seek, such support.
“Your people are out there, they’re waiting for you to find them,” Gordon-Ross said.
Senior Evan McDonald reflected on the growth and self-discovery of high school students.
“While we have these last few precious minutes together, we celebrate both our time in high school and the journey that awaits,” McDonald said.
“Taking a risk for a new experience is terrifying, but it is our strongest asset going forward in life,” McDonald added. “There is no label that will define you unless you let it.”
Several students were recognized with honors.
Ian Freel and Goldy Stephens won the Kansas State High School Activities Association Citizenship Award, which recognizes students who demonstrate outstanding respect, responsibility, and community service.
Rodger Mayhew received the Lawrence High School Citizen of the Year award, selected by the senior class and given to a student who exemplifies leadership, school involvement, and respect.
Marci Leuschen, science department chair and girls’ flag football coach, was named Teacher of the Year by the senior class.
Nineteen valedictorians were honored with gold medallions for achieving perfect 4.0 GPAs: Ginny Besson, Sidra Besson, Eli Cokelet, Kamryn Daniels, Aedan FitzGerald, James Gassmann, Lily Havener, Sophia Hertach, Rodger Mayhew, Brae Mayo, Alex Oral, Isabelle Richards, Emilia Rosado Schmitt, Josie Segraves, Ellorie Severin, Zselyke Talata, Ashlyn Tell, Keegan Tuell and Eileen Zhao.
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Courtney Lane (she/her), staff reporter, has worked with The Lawrence Times since April 2026. She can be reached at [email protected].
Read her complete bio here. Read her work for the Times at this link, and see her photography for the Times at this link.
Nathan Kramer (he/him), a multimedia student journalist for The Lawrence Times since August 2024, is a recent graduate of Free State High School. He also served as a news photo editor for Free State’s student publication, where he worked as a videographer, photographer and motion designer. See more of his work for the Times here.
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