“The Grad Walk was a tremendous success,” reported Barriere Elementary School (BES) Principal Mikel Brogan, “Barriere Secondary (BSS) Principal John Tyler organized the grade 12 students at his school to bring them on a surprise visit to our school by bus.”
The grad students did not know where they were going, as they had only been told it was a surprise mystery tour.
Meanwhile, Brogan says the team at Barriere Elementary had been preparing for a week for the big surprise
“Our students and staff made signs with words of congratulations and then they lined the hallways and cheered on the graduates as they made their way through our hallways, said the BES principal, “We played the song ‘Simply the Best’ by Tina Turner on the PA system, and it was a tremendously positive and heartfelt experience for everyone involved.”
Brogan says the grade 12’s were in no way aware of what was going to happen on the mystery tour.
“It was a wonderful surprise for them, and particularly special for the students and teachers as many of these students started their educational careers in our school. It meant a lot for our teachers to see these kids all grown up and graduating.”
He noted the Grad Walk was such a success that both schools “will likely continue this tradition for years to come”.
“As the principal of the elementary, what I especially appreciated is how our younger students look up to the grade 12’s and could envision themselves one day doing the same thing when they graduate. It was special to hear from various students how excited and proud they were to know some of the students who were graduating.”
The grade 12 students were truly stars for the day and everyone made them feel like that.
”I want to thank principal Tyler and the team at BSS for their parts in planning and collaborating this wonderful experience,” added Brogan, “Most importantly, I want to congratulate all the grade 12 students at BSS on the wonderful accomplishment of graduation. All of us at BES wish them all the best in their future endeavours and thank them for their many contributions to the community of Barriere.”