RRHS seniors are 'killing it,' can 'climb that hill' to success, speakers say

RIO RANCHO — It was a time for smiles, hugs, fist bumps and foam heads as Rio Rancho High School seniors gathered at the Rio Rancho Events Center May 20 for their graduation ceremony.

The Class of 2025 heard from their peers, school district administrators and staff before they walked across the stage to get their diplomas and turn their tassels from right to left, signifying the end of their four-year academic journey.

Student Body President Anika Garduño was the first of the ceremony’s speakers, alluding to the graduating class’ experience navigating school during an unprecedented pandemic.

“It was crazy to think we were sent home, thinking it would be two weeks of spring break, but instead, we spent all or most of the year scrolling through screens, missing the normal moments,” Garduño said. “But ... today, we stand here graduating.”

Valedictorian Tanner Donaldson thanked parents and teachers, stating, “We wouldn’t be here without you.” He concluded his speaking slot not with words, but music, performing an instrumental on a piano keyboard.

RRHS teacher Chelsea Mont, who was this year’s commencement speaker, told students she graduated from high school exactly 25 years ago and used the generational divide to highlight the differences in pressure each group faced.

“The truth is, we collectively have made all of the same mistakes you have made and will continue to make. But the main difference is, no one can prove it,” Mont said. “You’ve had to grow up with the world watching. Every moment documented, analyzed, liked or commented on — or worse, ignored or left unread.”

But the RRHS graduating class, she said, learned to conquer the “double-edged sword” of technology.

“You’ve learned to walk that edge with a kind of resilience, creativity and awareness that humanity desperately needs,” Mont said.

She went on to say graduation is not just about celebrating the graduates’ accomplishments; it’s about celebrating who they are. Mont called the Class of 2025 “the most diverse, forward-thinking, open-hearted generation we’ve ever known.”

“You weren’t just built to survive this world — you were built to change it, and you’re already killing it,” she said.

Mont closed her remarks by saying she had full confidence in the Class of 2025 and wished them the best of luck in their decisions, right down to what to make for dinner each night.

Rio Rancho Public Schools Superintendent Sue Cleveland told graduates that “change” is the word that best describes the spirit of the moment they’re in.

“Graduates, today you stand face-to-face with the changes that are coming into your life,” Cleveland said.

She encouraged the graduates to “embrace change, but with a critical eye.”

“The goal should never be to avoid change, but neither should it be to chase it recklessly,” Cleveland said.

Speaking on behalf of the Rio Rancho Public Schools Board of Education, President Amanda Galbraith, wished the graduates success throughout their lives. Then, she offered a metaphor for their careers, owing to her physical fitness regimen, which involves hiking.

“When you see that hill, climb it,” Galbraith said.

In an interview following the ceremony, parent Chris Cdebaca said he and his wife have an “overwhelming sense pride and accomplishment” for their daughter, senior Amaya Ricks.

Cdebaca said with a laugh that when Ricks walked across the stage to receive her diploma, he could not stop himself from getting up out of his seat to get closer to the stage with his phone to film the moment.

“I broke the rules and got as close to my daughter as I could,” Cdebaca said.

In an interview following the ceremony, senior Lathan Coca said he had a happy and fun four years at RRHS. He was anxious before graduation, but by the end of the proceedings, he was happy and proud of himself.

“I’m still soaking (graduation) in, but I have my plans — (I’ve) always got to keep that in mind and keep my head in the right direction,” Coca said.

He plans to enroll with IBEW Local 611 in Albuquerque to become an electrician.

Coca’s blue cap and gown seemed no match for another sight outside of the Rio Rancho Events Center following graduation. One parent, Jose Sanchez, held up a giant foam head of his son attached to a stick. He said his son was a soccer player and another parent decided to make foam heads of all the seniors on the team.

“It was the perfect way of getting him to us,” the senior Sanchez said, referring to the big crowd that had formed outside of the venue following graduation. The senior Sanchez added with a laugh: “We wanted to embarrass him in front of everybody.”

Julian Sanchez’s face lit up like a Christmas tree when he posed for a picture holding his own foam head. He was, however, short on words, simply describing his graduation as “chill.”