Rye Neck High School

Rye Neck School celebrated its 123rd Commencement on June 21. While the school band’s rendition of“Pomp and Circumstance” filled the sunny football field, families and friends cheered for the 122 graduating seniors from the bleachers. Rye Neck Superintendent Barbara Ferraro praised the class of 2018 for being “creative thinkers and problem solvers, who approach life with respect and kindness for all.”

Salutatorian Olivia Dunne, who is headed to the University of Chicago in the fall to pursue her interests in molecular engineering and biological sciences, noted that her class “epitomizes the concept of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.”

She was followed by her lifelong friend from kindergarten, the valedictorian Allie Liebmann, who will be attending Yale University to pursue her interests in math and science. She discussed the fact that she and her peers are embarking on a journey in a much larger world, yet “our generation, through technology, is connected to more people than ever before.”

In keeping with a tradition, the “Ten Years After” speaker series, the keynote speaker was a Rye Neck alum, Andoni Elias Nava, class of 2008. The inspiring filmmaker, who went on to earn his BFA in Film and Television from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and currently works on films, commercials, and music videos in Los Angeles, paid homage to Rye Neck by sharing the valuable lessons he learned there.

Rather than sugar coating the graduates’ futures, the alum discussed the reality of rejections and disappointments, as well as the importance of adapting and redefining the meaning of success along the way. “It’s up to you to decide what to make of life,” Nava said. “Hold on to the people you love most because that’s what it’s all about.”

Before Rye Neck High School Principal Tina Wilson presented the class of 2018, the Rye Neck Teachers’ Association Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Raven Parham for her effort, service, and leadership.

• Janice Fabry

CAPTIONS:

#3815 Superintendent Barbara Ferraro and Principal Tina Wilson with keynote speaker/alumnus Andoni Elias Nava

#3788 Salutatorian Olivia Dunne and Valedictorian Allie Liebmann

The Graduates

Anne Emilie Alcin

Sabrina Angulo

Sara Caitlyn Aulfinger

Olivia Megan Beach

Paola Yamilett Becerra

Thomas Valentine Bermingham III

Charles Bigaouette

Francesco Branca Jr.

Lamont Bryant

Nina Josefine Buettner

Roman James Calcagni

Martina Caruso

Daniel Colman

Amanda Marie Colodro

Macy Marie Cooper

Beatrix Jane Cress

Brian Michael Cucchiara

Pedro Peter Cueto

Mahmoud Khaled Daas

Kathleen J. DaSilva

Stephen Henry Davis

Elizabeth Anastacia DeGeorge

Alexandra DeLaCruz

Colby Samuel Delarosa

Kristina Dignelli

Emily Rose DiLillo

Olivia Eleanor Dunne

Donovan Terrance Dunning

Emma Ray Finkenberg

Nicholas P. Fischer

Conor Michael Flood

Ryan J. Francavilla

Aidan Freyne

Celeste Cristal Fuentes-Muñoz

Donald Kenneth Fuentes Rios

Shogo Fukumoto

Benjamin Galerne

Matthew C. Galstian

Alexa Elizabeth Garcia

Zachary Gibbs

Sophie Rhiannon Gibson

Joshua Goldin McCarthy

Jessica L. Gottlieb

Gavin Judd Greenhill

Maya Rose Guagnini

Eikoh Hayashi

Aidan Heaton

Larissa Hodzic

Evelyn E. Hong

Daisy M. Jayson

Joosep E. Juhkam

Margaret Alexandra Kohler

Kayla Lorraine Laguerre-Lewis

Omar Armand Laguerre-Lewis

Kristina Ann Leira

Nicholas G. LeMoigne

Antonio Leone Jr.

Allie J. Liebmann

Conor J. Liguori

James D. Lord

Nathaniel Z. Lynch

Vincent Lawrence Marchione III

Ashlai Marquez

Eva Marsh

Olivia Margaret Martino

John Louis Masciopinto

Sean McCaffery

Anthony V. Miceli

Emily K. Michaels

William Daniel Morningstar

Yuri Nagafuchi

Alessia Novello

Mitchell Howard O’Brien

Margaret O’Malley

Genki Jay Ono

Christopher Ortiz

Raven D. Parham

Luka Peradze

Alana Nicole Proudian

Lucas D. Pukit

Alyssa Rainaldi

Derick Ramirez

Andrew Aaron Rayburn

Maya Sophie Richards

Yadira Rios

Gustavo Ivan Riquelme Zarate

Raymond Dennis Rivituso

Alicia Tatiana Rodriguez

Jackelyn Samantha Rosales

Rachel Yale Rubin

Kaylee Isabella Sanabria

Priscilla Crystal Sandoval

Nicolette Sansotta

Jessica D. Santoli

Marisa T. Santoli

Shikhar Premjeeth Saran

Julie Seljegard

Jessica Skye Sevean

Lindsey Sherman Sexton

John Matthew Christian Sheldon

Kenny Soriano

Ignacio M. Soto Vega

Nicholas R. Stenroos

Vanessa Stoeckhert

Keeley Stuff

Leo Swatski

Kevin J. Tamucci

Bennett Chapman Taylor

Rebecca R. Taylor

Ajaks Temali

Joseph Tenner

Dayanara Toledo-Camargo

Alexis L. Tufo

Aidan Michael Tuohy

Brendan Tuohy

Michael Vasquez

Sophia Lynn Wice

Griffin J. Wollowitz

Samantha G. Yannuzzi

Justen Yergo

Yolisma Zarate Vergel

April Zhang

Colleges They Will Attend

Bard College

Berklee College of Music

Bucknell University

California State University

Cedar Crest College

Champlain College

Colgate University

Colorado School of Mines

Concordia University

Cornell University

CUNY Baruch College

CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice

CUNY NYC College of Technology

Davidson College

Eastern Connecticut State University

Eckerd College

Fashion Institute of Technology

Fordham University

Georgetown University

Hamilton University

Indiana University at Bloomington

Iona College

Lafayette College

Manhattan College

McGill University

Miami University, Oxford

Muhlenberg College

College of New Rochelle

The New School

The Ohio State University

Olin College of Engineering

Pace University, NYC

Pennsylvania State University

Quinnipiac University

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Sacred Heart University

Sarah Lawrence College

Siena College

Southern Methodist University

SUNY Albany

SUNY Binghamton

SUNY Cobleskill

SUNY Cortland

SUNY Maritime

SUNY New Paltz

SUNY Oneonta

SUNY Plattsburgh

SUNY Potsdam

SUNY Purchase

SUNY Stony Brook

Syracuse University

University of Arizona

University of California

University of Chicago

University of Connecticut

University of Delaware

University of Hartford

University of Maryland

University of Michigan

University of Notre Dame

University of Rhode Island

University of Wisconsin

Vassar College

Waseda University

Westchester Community College

Yale University