Fight for their values and recognize what they’ve accomplished — that’s what elected student speaker Gavin Hunt on Tuesday told 113 graduates of Kenai Central High School as they prepared to receive their diplomas.
Tossing the microphone aside and shouting to the packed auditorium, Hunt told his peers that, together, they could change the world. Alone, their voices would be too quiet.
“Fight as the generation who will stand tall,” he said. “I don’t care what it may be that you fight for, as long as it is something that you believe in.”
Kenai’s students have outgrown the school and now are responsible for their own lives, he said. They’re supportive, caring and passionate. Each of them are special. To graduate, with or without accolades, scholarships or a plan for the future is “a feat that has been taken far too much for granted.”
Hunt told his classmates to be bold, proud, and encouraging of one another. He told them to “live, laugh and love.” He called on them to dare to try something new, “being unique instead of normal.”
“Forget what has been established and try new things, even if it’s something small,” he said. “If something isn’t changing, it is dying.”
Hunt was among a series of speakers, including salutatorian Grace Kahn and valedictorians Oliver Boersma and Elliot Hanson, who encouraged the graduates to recognize their accomplishments and growth from four years at Kenai Central as they look ahead to diverse futures.
Commencement speaker Matthew Cross, who teaches math at the school, told his students “nothing good ever comes from staying in our comfort zone.” He encouraged them to go out into the world and fail — and in doing so to learn more about themselves.
What matters, he said, is learning and trying again.
“By failing, you show that you’ve pushed yourselves,” he said. “You show that you’ve tried something new, something different, something you weren’t already an expert at. Without failure, you never know where the limit actually is, and you never know how far you truly could have gone.”
Fortunately for the students of Kenai Central, Cross said that when they fail, they’ve got a supportive community to return to.
“Kenai will always be here.”
Cross’ words echoed an address delivered by Kenai’s Senior Class President Sarah Jane Baisden at the beginning of the ceremony. She told her peers that achievement means persevering through failure — be that a failure on a test, a homework assignment, in a relationship or getting a car between the lines in a parking lot. Each of Kenai’s graduates has succeeded, has failed, and will do both again.
“You are not defined by who we were in high school,” Baisden said to her classmates. “You get to grow, to change, to start over as many times as you want. High school was just one version of you, not the end product.”
Though she encouraged each of the gathered students to grow beyond the walls of Kenai Central, she also told them to remember what their successes, failures and “the things that made this class uniquely ours.” Kenai’s class of 2025 are athletes and artists; they’re brilliant and they’re confident. They know some “developed” slang.
“Chat, we’re, like, graduating high school right now,” she said.
Kenai Central 2025 graduates
Grady Adams !
Cemre Akgul ^
Makenna Anthony /!
Sarah Baisden #!
Kevin Baker
Tamia Barnes
Nathaniel Bastke !
Rhett Bilger
Lance Billings
Isla Blankenship
Oliver Boersma *
Aaliyah Bookey !
Samuel Brighton !
Daniel Burtram
Delen Byrd
Eliseo Castro
Hollan Chadwick
Alexander Collet
Elijah Cooper !
Tait Cooper !
Trapper Cottrell
Peyton Cowie
Fox Coyle !
Caitlyn Crapps !
Levi Crawford
Dain Douthit
Michelle Elizabeth Duffield
Devon Duniphin
Ryker Dykema
Alisia Elias
Dayne Focose
Raegan Fry
Christine Goering ^
Ximena Gonzalez
Jylann Green !
Carson Grimm
Kane Guest
Kaylauna Gump
Rohan Hansen
Elliot Hanson *
Benjamin Harris
Robert Hayes
Arianna Hensley !
Sierra Hershberger !
Flokarta Hoxha ^
Hayden Hughes
Gavin Hunt
Zane James
Gabriel Joanis
Makai Johansen
Jason Johnson !
Grace Kahn +#
Jacob Katzenberger !
Keira Kilgore-Ginnetti !
McKenzie Koliba !
Silvan Krieg ^
Matthew Krol
Cole Langham
Kaya Lanman !
Boyd Lehmberg
Caleb Litke
Kendal Loggins
Madison Malone
Avery Martin
Brandi Martin
Alexander Martinez
Jasmine Matthews
Audrey McDonald #!/
Lola McEwen #!
Luke McGee
Enrique Mercado !
Avia Miller !
Ty Morris
Meriedi Morrison !
Lincoln Nelson
Rylee Novak
Kohyn Orlob
Ellee Pancoast
Alejandro Pangelinan
Kimberly Parker
Antonio Perez
Aidan Petla !
Josiah Revera
Benjamin Roberts #!
Lochlyn Roney
Keegan Roumell
Atlas Ruark
Luis Saravia
Aleaha Searl
Stella Selanoff !
Nikki Somers #!
Brooklyn Stewart
Seanna Swanson
Keanu Swearingen
Alexis Taylor
Mya Taylor !
Isabel Thomas
Austin Thompson
Isabella Tomrdle
Destin Trickel !
Tyler Van Sky
Sawyer Vann !
Alyssa Walker #!
Makenna White
Leif Wilshusen
Dakota Wisnewski !
Kate Wisnewski !
Marcus Wong !
Jalyn Yeoman
Jenna Yeoman
Key
Valedictorian — *
Salutatorian — +
National Honor Society — #
Honors Diploma — !
Service Cord — /
Students process into the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Students process into the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Students process into the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Students process into the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Student Body President Sarah Jane Baisden speaks during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Valedictorians Oliver Boersma and Elliot Hanson speak during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Salutatorian Grace Kahn speaks during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Gavin Hunt speaks during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Students wait to receive their diplomas during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Matthew Cross speaks during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Students wait to receive their diplomas during the Kenai Central High School graduation ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Graduates celebrate at the end of the Kenai Central High School commencement ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Graduates celebrate at the end of the Kenai Central High School commencement ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Graduates celebrate at the end of the Kenai Central High School commencement ceremony in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
