Pepperell freshmen pledge to graduate

Photo: Pepperell freshmen Tanisha Miller, Jazmin Diego, and Trent Mull participate in the graduation pledge

Media release: The Pepperell High School class of 2016 held a special "Handprint Pledge" ceremony on Friday, November 16 making a commitment to graduate in four years. The ceremony was held at 1:45 p.m. in the school's auditorium with special speakers encouraging the class to stick it out until graduation. This is one of many efforts Pepperell and other county high schools are making to improve the graduation rate.

Several community and civic leaders addressed the class of 2016 and gave them tips on traversing the four years of the high school experience. Tonya Davis,owner of BDD Consulting Services , told the freshman that you must first believe that you are awesome. "You must believe that you are destined for something special, you are worth it," Davis said. "Believe in yourself and then help someone else to believe too."  Dr. Lynn Plunkett, retiring superintendent of Floyd County Schools, told the young teens that she may not be there for their graduation ceremony but that she was going to be watching to see that they kept to their pledge.  She said,"This is a special commitment that will impact the rest of your life."

The freshman students all contributed handprints to seal their pledge to finish what they have started. The handprints were printed on a large banner displayed on the auditorium stage during the ceremony. The large handprint banner will be placed on a wall at the school. The banner is taken down at graduation and will hang behind the graduates as they participate in their graduation ceremony in 2016.  Pepperell teacher John Rhodarmer gave the students extra incentive to graduate. "What if I were to give you a million dollars to graduate?" Rhodarmer asked.  "Well that is exactly what you could get for graduating because studies show that is how much additional money a high graduate will make over a lifetime compared to a high school dropout."