South Lenoir High School graduate Erica Uribe gets a hug after commencement on Saturday while South Lenoir student Edgar Robles stands by with the bouquet. Graduation exercises at South Lenoir, Kinston and North Lenoir high schools closed out a series of five commencements for LCPS that saw diplomas awarded to 561 seniors and the Class of 2023 celebrated for earning a record $17.4 million in scholarship offers.

More than 500 Lenoir County Public Schools graduating seniors put an exclamation point on a dramatic, often challenging but ultimately successful chapter of their lives during commencement exercises at Kinston, North Lenoir and South Lenoir high schools on Saturday.

The Class of 2023 bounced back from freshman and sophomore years disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic to register a senior year highlighted by a record $17.4 million in scholarship offers and national recognition, statewide awards and top merit scholarship wins for its members.

“Over the last four years, we have shown that we can deal with uncertainty and overcome setbacks, no matter how great,” South Lenoir senior David Phillippe, a U.S. Presidential Scholars Program finalist, said in welcoming a capacity crowd to Munn Gymnasium for graduation. “We have shown the Class of 2023 has determination and tenacity. We have also shown that regardless of how we begin, we will certainly find success.”

South Lenoir awarded diplomas to 152 seniors. As a class, they accumulated more than $6 million in scholarship offers. Twelve seniors earned associate degrees from Lenoir Community College while in high school. Seventeen seniors were named N.C. Academic Scholars. “Today is about the joy of acknowledging your hard work and your dedication,” South Lenoir principal Elizabeth Pierce told her graduates. “Today is about new beginnings and next steps in your journey.”

Hailey Jones, who joined Gracie Howard as student commencement speakers, looked back before looking ahead. “Senior year has been full of lasts – the last first day of school, the last ballgame, the last exam and now our last goodbye,” she told her classmates. “We have finished strong and are about to begin a new chapter in our lives. Although graduation is the end of this chapter, it is not the end of your story. This is your story and there’s so much more to be written.”

For Kinston High seniors Janae Brown and TaTiana Staten-Burns, the story to date is one of academic excellence, recognized during commencement with the presentation, respectively, of the Academic Scholar trophy that goes to the student with the highest GPA and the Viking Scholar trophy that honors the student with the next highest GPA.

“Graduation marks the end of one chapter and the beginning of another,” said TaTiana, who joined Derrian Wilson, a Morehead-Cain scholarship winner, as student commencement speakers. “Today, we stand on the threshold of a new journey, a future filled with endless possibilities.”

Kinston High awarded diplomas to 160 seniors, 11 of whom were named N.C. Academic Scholars. The class earned $6.2 million in scholarship offers and, according to principal Kellan Bryant, left a mark on the school that went beyond the books.

“These last four years, we have witnessed over and over this class celebrating one another’s success, supporting each other through difficult times and showing genuine love for one another,” Bryant said. “The beautiful human qualities the Class of 2023 possess are not things we can teach in the classroom, but the character of these individuals have enhanced the learning environment and brought much joy to teaching and learning here at Kinston High School.”

North Lenoir High alumnus Tamarah Stanley called on graduates to “believe in your abilities and yourself” during her commencement keynote.

Introduced by summa cum laude graduate Claire Hollingsworth, Stanley was a member of the Class of 2001 at North Lenoir and, after securing degrees from East Carolina University, returned to the school as a teacher and later as a school counselor. With nearly 20 years in education, she is currently diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator for Arlington (Va.) Public Schools.

“Embrace the unknown with open arms,” Stanley said. “Graduation marks the start of a journey filled with countless opportunities and adventures. Embrace the uncertainties that lie ahead, for they are the stepping stones to personal growth and discovery.”

North Lenoir awarded diplomas to 199 seniors. The class earned more than $4 million in scholarship offers. Twenty seniors graduated with cum laude recognitions. Three seniors earned associate degrees from Lenoir Community College while in high school.

The back-to-back-to-back commencement exercises on Saturday capped a series of five graduations for LCPS. With earlier graduations at Lenoir County Early College High School and Lenoir County Learning Academy, 561 seniors earned diplomas. Fifty of them also earned associate degrees.