Schools

Hundreds of Tosa Seniors Say Goodbye to East and West Highs

Graduates look both forward to destinations and back on lessons learned at commencement ceremonies.

The dignified strains of "Pomp and Circumstance" accompanied the march of graduating seniors into the gymnasiums of both Wauwatosa West and East high schools Saturday.

However, at East, musically at least, the old familiar processional had to wait in line as the orchestra opened with one last soaring set of selections from "The Phantom of the Opera" – a fitting send-off to the many seniors involved in the Tosa East Players' theatrical triumph in April.

Theater programs from both schools would be well represented in the programs to come, as West's commencement speaker, Hannah Barbeau, played a leading role as Portia in "The Merchant of Venice," and East salutatorian Katherine Geertsen performed the female lead Christine in "Phantom."

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In its 11 a.m. ceremony, West High honored salutatorian Nicholas Abild and valedictorians Katherine Berggruen, Jennifer Ciriacks, Austin Kautzer, Herschel Kissinger, Julia Robles and Emily Roznowski.

West's opening speaker, graduating senior Angela O'Brien, themed her speech to the symbolism of the tassel each student wore on their caps, the one common keepsake of all graduates but much more than a length of braided fiber – more a link connecting them all.

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Barbeau, in her address, made the most of her theatrical talents as she was both entertaining and touching in pondering the real lessons she and her classmates would look back on as having learned.

At 1 p.m. at East High, Geertsen was joined on the stage by valedictorians Kelley Annesley, Alexander Conway, Morgan Lucey, Cassandra Osinski and Erik Pintar.

Student commencement speakers at East were Girard Gorelick and Shannon Rowbottom.

Gorelick drew laughs as he recalled how he had to overcome skepticism and grow into actually liking the idea of high school, but he also choked up and brought solemn silence to the house remembering Jack Doyle, a former Longfellow Middle School classmate who died in 2006.

Rowbottom earned the admiration of her class and the crowd by delivering her entire adress in lilting metered verse.

A highlight of the ceremony at East was the presence of School Board President Lois Weber, Class of 1948, passing out diplomas while decked out in a bright Raider red suit and corsage.

Asked how many East commencements she had missed since her own, Weber said, "Oh, not too many." Weber has served on the School Board for 34 consecutive years.

One other solemn note sounded at both ceremonies when it was announced that Superintendent Phil Ertl could not be there to bid farewell to the district's graduates because he had been called away by a death in his family.

The principals of both high schools asked all in attendence to keep Ertl and his family in their thoughts, as they were surely in his.

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The Wauwatosa East and West high school commencement programs, naming all graduates and listing all scholarships awarded to the Class of 2011, are available for viewing in the photo gallery accompanying this story.


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