ZEPHYRHILLS HIGH
NUMBER OF GRADUATES: 306
VALEDICTORIAN: Jessi Barnett
SALUTATORIAN: Zachary Winters
SPEAKERS: Principal Andrew V. Frelick, Leah Melquist (senior class president), Winters and Barnett
QUOTE: "You've learned to appropriately fill out a Scantron form over and over." — Winters joking about what students have learned in high school.
SENIOR NOTABLES: Winters and Emily Burgess (best all around), Dylan Peters and Sydney Owens (citizenship), Austin Ladd and Melquist (leadership), Aaron Kinney and Molly Verrill (most spirited).
VISUAL AID: Friends and family were able to get to know the graduates briefly thanks to the students' selfies and photos playing on the big screen at the Sun Dome before the ceremony began.
STAND-OUT SPEECH: While all three speakers were fun and sarcastic, Melquist's cynical but light-hearted speech ended with her remix to The Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme song. It joked about principal Frelick taking care of disobedience on campus.
CLASS GIFT: The students gave principal Frelick an orange football helmet that was part of an inside joke. Frelick was both amused and grateful.
Katie Lamont, East Lake High/St. Petersburg College, tb-two* staff