Jacobs Salutatorian Speech: Jake Surges

Editor's Note: Here is the transcript of Jake Surges's speech from Jacobs High School's graduation ceremony.

Friends, family, and staff, I’d like to thank you for coming today to witness a great step in the lives of many young adults. We, the seniors, will remember this pivotal time in our lives as we move on from the safety of high school to take on the many trials of college, work, and independence. Yes, we’re already planning college orientations, or looking forward to training for a job or preparing for the military. But before we permanently set our sights on what lies ahead, let’s take one last look back, if only to give our friends and family a tiny idea of who we are. Jacobs has fostered this senior class into some of the high school’s greatest students; if you’re looking for strategists, not even our own Jacobs staff could stop our hallway clogging, chaos provoking, water balloon fight sophomore year. That same year we received agility training on a regular basis as we dodged hallway monitor Dudah, who literally ran around with police sirens. We have our share of brains… last year Erik and Brad received perfect ACT scores and led the charge as we brought out the prettier side of some of our male faculty, making them walk around bald. And this year some of us guys displayed our feminine side as the Guy Cheer and Guy Poms got a little too into the routines. Yet despite these gifts, half of the seniors, including me, still brought a lunch packed by our mothers.

On a serious note, I know that I speak for my classmates, even the girls that are going to be crying in an hour, when I say that as much as we may miss a teacher, class, sport, or friend, we’re ready to get out. We are ready to take the tools that our teachers and administration have given us and continue pursuing our dreams. And we are definitely ready to graduate. So friends and family, on behalf of the senior class, welcome to the moment we’ve all been waiting for, the graduation of the Jacobs class of 2011!