Sahuarita HS Graduation 2011

There is no high school graduation quite like those done in my district, Sahuarita, Arizona. It's a small district about 20 miles south of Tucson that I fell in love with coming from Chicago twenty years ago. It was small then in student enrollment, but not in square miles. It covers more than 400 of those.

When I first began teaching band there the high school was already creaky and old, having been built in 1967 and really showing it's age badly. Some rooms, like my legendary band room, was a temporary Butler Building that ended up being permanent. You could push on the rear brick wall manually and see daylight where the ceiling and wall met. I had my share of critters running around in there, and rain produced puddles more often then not. Heat? Forget about it. Cooling was handled buy a swamp cooler, stinky with mold for too much of the summer and fall. Most of the time I just kept it turned off. It did have great storage space; former students from that era still regale me with stuff they found in those spaces that had been placed there during my predecessors' watches (there had only been two band directors in the district prior to my arrival.

It was primarily a ranching community back then, with a few small subdivisions scattered here and there. School spirit was lacking, mostly because the district was so far-flung. Some towns in the district are nearly 30 miles away. Kids just didn't stick around once the buses left because they had no way home.

But it knew when and how to celebrate - and that was graduation night. It was a big party, really, filling the football stadium and partying into the night. We were among the first to start the tradition of the all-night Grad Nite, a closed campus party intent on keeping kids safe. We even got corporate sponsors involved - local auto dealers gave away a used car every year. It's a model that has been followed by many area high schools since.

In the late 1990's a developer moved into the area with massive development ideas, including the construction of an artificial lake and a huge community center. Rancho Sahuarita was born. Today that development has more than 5000 homes, making Sahuarita for a time the fastest growing community in Arizona. Out of that came the state-of-the-art new Sahuarita High School, which opened in 1999. We have nearly tripled in size since the old days, now at 1500 students. Of course the district built or modified new schools to feed the high school. Now, we get a second high school, when Walden Grove opens next fall.

But through all of this growth, the old customs have been preserved. The party lives on! And last night was a huge bash. Both stands of our new multi-million dollar football field were filled to overflowing last night, celebrating our largest graduating class ever. It was also one of my best graduating classes; only the 2000 and 2001 class for me matches in terms of numbers of great students leaving my programs. I have chronicled this senior class in other articles.

By all accounts last night's Grad Nite was one of the best ever, and was well attended. It wasn't the only party in town, but I believe that it was one of the first times this event was free to students. Parents, community organizations and area businesses all collaborated to produce a memorable - and safe event.

Congratulations class of 2011! It's scary out there but if any group of capable students can overcome the complexities of our modern world, you can!
(Photos from www.sahuaritasun.com)