Pasco High graduates 309 seniors

Pasco High School wasted no time getting its graduation ceremony going Saturday, with Principal Raul Sital welcoming those packing the west stands of Edgar Brown Stadium 10 minutes before the scheduled 10 a.m. start.

Moments later, the 309 graduating seniors were seated along the stadium’s track in their white and purple gowns.

With a class motto of “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it,” taken from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, an impression could be left that the students have priorities other than education. But administrators said that is far from the case, with Pasco High seniors claiming more than $1.5 million in college scholarships.

Valedictorian Kelsey Price, who will study medicine at Washington State University, praised the teachers who helped her achieve her goals.

“These teachers reached out to their students to make sure that we emerged from their classes, not just educated, but enlightened,” Price said.

In a bilingual address, Sergio Rico told the audience that he spoke only Spanish when he came to Pasco in 2009. But he not only learned English, he will attend WSU Tri-Cities in the fall.

“All of us graduates have built a solid foundation at Pasco High School, and college has gone from a dream to a reality,” Rico said.

Salutatorian Ignacio Bayardo, who will study life sciences at Harvard, served as master of ceremonies for much of the event.

This story was originally published June 1, 2013 at 12:47 PM with the headline "Pasco High graduates 309 seniors."