Celebrating the Class of 2020

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Source/Author: Mike Murphy, Headmaster

May 15, 2020

It’s a bird. It’s a plane, It’s a drive-through Senior Celebration and distribution of Diplomas and it should be Super!!! On Sunday, May 17, the Class of 2020, a record breaking class if there ever was one, will engage in a “final lap” around the Shorecrest campus in their cars and then one by one will be photographed receiving their diplomas in safe social distance from Shorecrest Board Chair, Dennis Leary; Head of Upper School, Don Paige; and Headmaster, Mike Murphy.

Making the best of a disappointing and disruptive end of their senior year has been the focus for the seniors, their families, and the Upper School faculty and administration. We are proud of this class and below, readers can get a glimpse of some of their special achievements.

There are 85 members of the Class of 2020.

39 have attended Shorecrest for 12 or more years and 11 have been at Shorecrest since Alpha.

4 are the children of Shorecrest graduates and 28 have siblings who are also alumni.

8 have parents who serve on the faculty or coaching staff.

6 are the children or grandchildren of Trustees or Emeritus Trustees.

The 85 members of the Class will attend 48 different universities. 34 will be the sole matriculant to their universities.

36 will remain in Florida Universities

17 will be in the NE and Mid Atlantic states,

14 will be in the south

12 across the midwest

2 will do gap years with one trying his feet in professional soccer in Europe and the other electing to do service around the community.

On Friday during the Upper School Awards Assembly, Aliyah Samuelson was named Valedictorian. Cecilia Garcia was named Salutatorian and CeCi was also named Outstanding Senior. In Shorecrest tradition, she will be invited to be the Commencement speaker for the Class of 2030, the current second grade.

5 members of the Class are Commended National Merit Scholars

1 is a National Hispanic Scholar

4 completed all requirements to earn the Global Scholars Certificate.

The average GPA for the Class is 3.87

The Class averaged 1285 on the SAT and 29 on the ACT.

The members of the Class have been offered over $5.7 million in scholarships to universities.

87% of the class qualified for Florida Bright Futures Scholarships

46 students qualified for to be Bright Futures Academic Scholars

28 others qualified as Bright Futures Medallion Scholars.

The Class of 2020 did lose a few opportunities, including Service Week 2020, to add to their Service Learning achievements. Yet, they still served for over 11,000 hours during the four years in the Upper School. They led at school through Student Council, Honor Council, and the Student Ambassador Program and then served non-profits across the community, country and world.

1 member of the class initiated a Service Week project at Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.

10 others recorded more than 200 hours of service at community churches and organizations that serve people, animals and environmental areas.

The Class of 2020 stands out for having many students with a passion for arts and the ability to advance in artistic studies and potentially careers.

3 won awards for Filmmaking

9 members of the class won Gold and Silver Keys and Honorable Mention status in the Scholastic Arts Competition.

1 was also recognized by being selected for the Mainsail Art Festival, The Pinellas Art Education Association Award and the inaugural Janet Root Award for Excellence in the visual arts

36 are National Art Honor Society members.

Shorecrest Thespian Troupe 3140 excelled with the leadership of 9 members of the Class of 2020.

7 senior members of the Troupe were invited to perform at the State Thespian competition.

5 members of the class will make theatre a major pursuit when they attend: Penn State, NYU Tisch, University of Colorado, Purdue and Ithaca College.

We know it takes spirit and some athletic skill to win Homecoming twice. It was the universal goal of the class when I met with them back in July and August, and thankfully they snuck by with the closest margin of victory ever. A win is a win.

6 School athletic records fell to members of the Class of 2020.

31 members of the Class participated in State Championship events.

2 were on the State Championship Volleyball team during their Junior year.

1 senior, during his junior year, won a state championship and broke 2 school records in swimming.

9 members of the senior class led the Swim and Dive Team to its 15th consecutive District Championship.

Our Soccer teams had magical years.

5 senior girls advanced the Girls Soccer Team to the State Championship and although the team lost in the championship game, the amazing season allowed the girls to send Coach Wolrath off with great memories and a special banner in the Crisp Gym celebrating the team.

The day after the girls played, the boys played in the State Championship and were considered huge underdogs as they faced undefeated Maclay. Coach Montoya had 10 seniors on his team who from the first to the last whistle controlled the game and brought home Shorecrest’s first State Championship in Soccer. Cheers! Cheers!

10 members of the Class have signed to play sports at their universities and colleges:

Swimming at UF, Swimming at Davidson, Volleyball at Alabama, Volleyball at Columbia, Baseball at Ursinus, Baseball at Allegheny, Basketball at St. Thomas, Tennis at Bryn Mawr, Tennis at Bates and Sailing at Hobart and William Smith.

The class has 2 Eagle Scouts, 2 pilots and at least 2 certified scuba divers. Some have their own musical recordings. Others have discovered an interest and skill in rock climbing. Many maintained jobs while doing all the achievements listed above and much, much more.

On Sunday, before receiving their diplomas, members from the Class of 2020 will be able to put a momento from this year into a time capsule that will be buried on campus. Ten years from now, when they return for their first official reunion, the capsule will be opened and the items revealed there are bound to create some laughs, tears and incredible memories of their time together — even while separated in these historic times.

Class of 2020, you have been terrific. I trust the best is yet to come. Congratulations to you and your families.

Cheers!

Mike

Read more about the Class of 2020 at: www.shorecrest.org/2020.

Members of the Class of 2020:

Isabella Acuna

Sebastian Acuna

Taylor Andrews

T. Chase Andrews

Lauren Ballestra

Turner Bramlet

Joseph Miles Brockman

Wynn Bryant