NEW YORK – Graduation season is upon us and this year was another successful school year for local students at community schools. The Stephen and Areti Cherpelis Greek Afternoon School of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Shrine Church in Flushing held the 8th grade graduation ceremony on June 8. The ceremony, as Principal George Kanellopoulos noted, touched the hearts of the students, teachers, and parents as the speakers referred to the importance of the Greek language. Keynote speaker and the head of Educational Affairs at the Consulate General of Greece in New York, Thaleia Chatzigiannoglou impressed the audience with her advice to the graduates.
Among the speakers at the event were Fr. Paul Palesty, Stephen Cherpelis- the school’s benefactor, the vice-president of the community Lazaros Hotzoglou, and School Board President Maria Zolotas.
The William Spyropoulos Greek-American Day School of St. Nicholas held its 8th grade graduation on June 9. Principal Athena Kromidas congratulated the students and wished them success in the rest of their school career. “We are extremely happy,” she said, “to announce that 100% of our 8th grade students were admitted to a high school of their choice. Some have been admitted to high school with partial or full scholarships.”
Fr. Paul Palesty congratulated the students for their excellent performance and for the very good Greek they speak and asked them not to forget the values of Hellenism and Orthodoxy. “You are,” he said, “the ideal preachers of the ideals and values of our people.”
Consul General of Greece in New York Konstantinos Koutras said that the William Spyropoulos School is a “bright beacon and along with the whole community and the church, an example for all.”
Lawyer Katerina Contaratos, the keynote speaker, pointed out the importance of maintaining the Greek language for the new generations.
Finally, valedictorian Panagiota Sideratou thanked her parents for sending her to St. Nicholas and all the teachers for everything they taught her.
The St. Demetrios High School senior graduation ceremony took place on June 9 at the Petros G. Patrides Cultural Center in Astoria with the 27 students graduating. All the speakers, including the valedictorian and salutatorian, expressed their gratitude for the school’s benefactors- the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and St. Demetrios School Board Chairman Nick Andriotis for their generous donations.
This year, three of the speakers were graduates of St. Demetrios High School- keynote speaker Evy Poumpouras- the TV correspondent and former Secret Service agent; dean of St. Demetrios Cathedral Fr. Nektarios Papazafiropoulos; and the Executive Vice President of the parish council, Menelaos Belitsis.
All three mentioned the role of school and the community in their professional careers, and urged the graduates not to forget the school and the community and to return to offer their services and entrust the education of their own children to St. Demetrios.
The school’s college advisor Helen Karagiorgos congratulated the children, the parents, and the teachers as did Superintendent Anastasios Koularmanis who also expressed gratitude for the donations of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and Nick Andriotis.
Valedictorian Alexandros Matzoros said, “I am grateful to the Greek teachers of St. Demetrios who passionately taught me everything starting from the alphabet to Greek literature and culture. So when I go to Greece, I will feel different than I felt before, I will feel like a true Greek.”
Salutatorian Maria Panikidis expressed her gratitude to her parents Kostas and Panagiota “for their choice to send me to Saint Demetrios and my grandmother, Parthena, for her wise advice.”
Maria Akoumianakis awarded a prize in memory of her husband, Nick Akoumianakis, the school’s coach who recently passed away prematurely.
Consul General Koutras reminded graduates that they are blessed to graduate from high school and noted that their peers in Greece do not have the same opportunities they do.
“St. Demetrios School of Astoria is very important and we must not forget that those who have come to Greece in the last few years due to the crisis have found a home at this school,” he concluded.
On June 10, the final joint graduation for the 6th and 8th grade students of St. Demetrios Greek Afternoon School was held at the Petros G. Patrides Cultural Center. Starting in the new school year, the Greek school will be compulsory through the 8th grade. Fr. Nektarios Papazafiropoulos offered a blessing, congratulations to the students, and thanked Principal Angeliki Agka and the teachers for their efforts, as well as the parents for their love and trust in the school.
Head of Educational Affairs at the Consulate General of Greece in New York, Thaleia Chatzigiannoglou, and teacher and former principal Timoleon Kokkinos also congratulated the graduates.
On Sunday, June 11, after the Divine Liturgy, the graduation ceremony of the Holy Trinity St. Nicholas Greek School of Staten Island was held in the community cultural center. The students of all grades wrote poems, sang, and read farewells.
Fr. Nicholas Petropoulakos congratulated the students, parents, and educational staff for the excellent school year and noted the importance of maintaining the Greek language among the new generations.
Principal Anastasia Mantas congratulated the students on the diligence and dedication they showed throughout the school year.
“You have been provided with a great asset of inestimable value for your future. Preserve the Greek language as a great resource, promote it, and improve it continuously. Many congratulations to the parents.”
The graduating student Christos Pervolarakis, thanked principal and teacher Anastasia Mantas for all that she had taught him, as well as his parents who sent him to Greek school.
Another graduating student, Eleni Delacruz, said, “Thanks to my parents and teachers for everything. I will always remember my Greek school with a lot of love and I will always visit it.”
The post Graduation Ceremonies Highlight a Successful School Year for Community Students (Video) appeared first on The National Herald.