Bright future in store for St. Ignatius graduates
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MISSION -- Eighty one percent of St. Ignatius High School graduates are moving onto trade schools or college, according to Principal Shawn Hendrickson.
“I am excited to see where these kids are four or five years down the
road,” Hendrickson said. “We have engineers in the works, nurses in the works and teachers in the works. These kids will do good.”
During Saturday’s commencement exercises, Hendrickson highlighted the most memorable parts of the 2015-16 school year. Beating Ronan in softball and football, lip synch battles, homecoming week, survivor challenges and senior pranks were just a few of the significant moments that left an impression on the senior class, according to Hendrickson.
“They are a tight-knit group and they all look out for each other,”
Hendrickson said. “They are fun bunch.”
As this close group sat in their blue and white gowns, St. Ignatius staff member Sara Keast addressed the graduating seniors with helpful tips for their futures.
“Live your life. Don’t just exist,” Keast said. “The sooner you believe in yourself, the sooner you can live it.”
Keast emphasized the importance of having self-confidence to make for a brighter future.
“Each one of you has the ability to find success. Don’t doubt yourself,” Keast said. “Be confident in you.”
After the St. Ignatius Class of 2016 tossed their caps in the air and walked through a standing ovation of proud family members and friends, they stepped outside, closing an important chapter of their life.
Future SKC psychology student Haley Carroll is going to miss seeing her friends and familiar faces everyday in the hallways.
“I can’t believe that we are graduating,” Carroll said. “I feel like our time here has gone by so fast.”
Carroll will be working this summer and preparing for her first semester of college.
“I am a little nervous, but I think that is pretty normal,” Carroll said.
Classmate Nina Popyk, who will be attending Missoula College for welding, is looking forward to her future.
“I am excited for the new area and seeing a new culture,” Popyk said. “I am not that nervous because I am used to moving around.”
Class President and Salutatorian Billy von Holtum is excited for his future, but is now realizing how fast time can fly.
“Some people would say that four years of high school can be pretty long, but if you asked any of us … we would say it has gone fast,” von Holtum said.
2016 St. Ignatius Graduates and Scholarships
Anderson, Pamela
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260; St. Ignatius Honor Scholar, $250; We Love MSUN, $1,000; MSUN Gold Merit, $1,000.
Barnaby, Daniel
SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000.
Bigby, Mia
SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000.
Bland, Brandon
Bravo-Oliver, Emilio
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500.
Haley Carroll
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500.
Castor, Sydney
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260; Mission Valley Scholarship, $500; American Legion Scholarship, $50.
Decker, Wyatt
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000.
Doll, Nathaniel
Roseburg Forest Products/OSAC, $20,000.
Durglo, Nicholas
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000; St. Ignatius Honors Scholar, $250; American Legion Scholarship, $50; CSKT Higher Education Scholarship, $20,000; MSU Bozeman American Indian Tuition Fee Waiver, $27,400; Rosemary Miller Memorial/St. Luke’s Scholarship, $500; MV Masonic Lodge Scholarship, $1,000.
Eichert, Jordyn
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways $23,260; St. Ignatius Honors Scholar, $750; Sid Allard Memorial, $1,000; Montana Academic Achievement Award, $1,500.
Elverud, Francis Tristen
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; Post 9/11 GI Bill, $88,000.
Esslinger, Andrew
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260; Fayler Family Memorial Scholarship, $250; MSU Bozeman Premier Scholarship, $1,000.
Goss-Dickie, Ethan
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260; Dickinson Teddy Roosevelt Scholarship, $12,500; Dickinson Athletic Scholarship/Wrestling, $4,000; Dickinson Grant, $600.
Hammond, I’isha
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000; CSKT Higher Education Scholarship, $20,000.
Kirk, Angelique
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000.
LaChance, Emmanuelle
Ken Rohrenbach/Job Service Scholarship, $1,000; St. Ignatius Federation of Teachers, $250; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000; UM Western American Indian Tuition Waiver, $16,904; CSKT Higher Education Scholarship, $20,000.
Magpie, Calista
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000; Fayler Family Memorial Scholarship, $250.
Polinksy, Koltin
Popyk, Nina
Spidel, Tyler
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260.
Sure Chief, Timothy
SKC Tuition, $6,000.
Umphrey, Israel
GEAR UP Achievement, $1,500; GEAR UP Pathways, $23,260; SKC Tuition Waiver, $6,000.
Vanden Bos, Adrianna Daisie
St. Ignatius Honors Scholar, $250.
von Holtum, Wiliam
Parents: Peter and Dorothy von Holtum
GEAR UP Achievement Grant, $1,500; Governor’s Best and Brightest, $8,000; St. Ignatius Honors Scholar, $500; Montana Contractor’s Association, $1,000; Mission Valley Power MVP Scholarship, $200; MSU Bozeman Premier Scholarship, $1,500; Max Johnson Memorial Scholarship, $334; St. Ignatius Catholic Parish Scholarship, $466.
Weingart, Tate
Max Johnson Memorial Scholarship, $334; St. Ignatius Catholic Parish Scholarship, $466.
