Merced County’s 2015 graduates make principals proud

This year’s graduating class is made up of determined and talented young leaders, according to Merced County high school principals.

They’ve broken records and set the bar high for incoming seniors, school officials said Thursday, a few hours before graduates walked across stages to receive diplomas that would send them off to the “real world.”

Seniors at Merced, Golden Valley, Atwater, Buhach Colony, Livingston and Hilmar high schools graduated Thursday night.

Seniors at Dos Palos, Gustine, Delhi and Los Banos high schools graduate Friday; Yosemite High students graduated Wednesday and Le Grand High students graduated May 29.

Steve Hobbs, principal at Buhach Colony, had a warm message for this year’s 390 graduating students.

“Set your goals high,” Hobbs said. “Shoot for the moon, because even if you miss you’ll land among the stars.”

Hobbs, who started at Buhach Colony as an associate principal four years ago, said this year’s class is a special one for him.

“This is the first class I’ve seen all the way through,” he said. “The diversity of different talents, and their involvement in a wide variety of classes and programs ... I think that’s what makes them unique.”

Golden Valley High School’s Class of 2015 is also one to be remembered, said Principal Constantino Aguilar. According to Aguilar, the class of 454 outgoing seniors broke a number of records. One record he said he’s particularly proud of is that this year’s class earned a total of $1.3 million in scholarships, in both academics and athletics.

“This class really persevered,” Aguilar said. “They demonstrated leadership and really helped transform the culture in campus.”

Ryan Hartsoch, Los Banos High’s principal, said he is sure this year’s graduates have a bright future ahead of them.

“I would say congratulations, and I’m sure they will go on to do great things,” he said. The 260 seniors will take the stage Friday at 8 p.m.

Hartsoch said this year’s class is characterized by their camaraderie.

“This is not a super-large class,” he said. “Since the beginning, it’s been smaller than the other classes, but I think that’s what’s made them very close.”

The principal said the students had their senior picnic Thursday, and their genuine friendships were obvious.

Hartsoch said 40 percent of last year’s class will go on to four-year universities. While numbers have not been crunched yet, he estimates this class will surpass last year’s.

This story was originally published June 4, 2015 at 7:04 PM with the headline "Merced County’s 2015 graduates make principals proud."