Charismatic speakers highlight Mat-Su Career and Technical graduation ceremony

The Mat-Su Career and Technical High School class of 2026 celebrated their graduation at a very full Curtis D. Menard Center on Thursday evening. A cast of charismatic speakers kept the ceremony lighthearted with many smiles, laughs and inside jokes shared between students and faculty.

Master’s of Ceremonies speakers Allison Nelson and Tristan Tweto shared a cute dialogue to kick-off the event. Their encouraging message was for their fellow graduates to always push themselves, embrace change and try something new.

“It is never too late to start,” Nelson said. “Try everything. Take the trip. Dance with your friends. Do it all. Because the things that will change your life the most are often the things that scare you.”

Student speaker Rick Benedict’s whimsical speech full of satirical humor and movie quotes kept the audience laughing as he congratulated his classmates on surviving the last four years of high school.

“People say the future is in our hands, which is honestly terrifying because I dropped my phone at least five times this morning,” Benedict laughed. “Now, at the end of our career as high school students, we have an opportunity. Now is our time to go out into the world and to be great.”

Reece Justice saw his peers as a group of influential doers on the path to do great things in their careers.

“I believe that every person is destined for greatness. And that no one path is laid out for you, but yet shaped and formed by what you do in your life. Who you meet, and what you strive for,” Justice said. “You choose your own path in life.”

And finding that path comes from having a sense of curiosity. Valedictorian Kai Beck spoke about acting upon his curiosity during his time at Career Tech. His wishes were for his class to continue being curious and finding new ways to see and change the world.

“There is a common saying that curiosity killed the cat, which is especially ironic given the nature of our mascot,” Beck snickered. “But curiosity is nothing to be ashamed of. It is something to strive for. That is my wish for all of you. Stay curious, keep trying new things, keep asking questions, keep exploring the world around you, even when the answers are uncertain.”

History teacher and keynote speaker Andy Dwyer kept the laughs going throughout his send off. Contrary to the previous speakers, Dwyer turned to his teachings and asked the students to look back every now and again to remember the groundwork they laid out to be where they are today.

“On the first day of class when I’m explaining to students why it’s important to study history, I say life is like a rowboat. To use the oars, you have to sit backwards,” Dwyer said. “Which means in a rowboat, as in life, you can’t see what’s ahead of you. You have to look behind you to use it as a reference to guide you to where you want to be.”

As they follow their curiosity, their drive to try new and hard things, it is the experiences and the time spent at Career Tech that will guide the class of 2026 forward.

Dwyer joined the graduates and took a moment to address this with their metaphorical rowboat.

“And I got to say, I like where we’re headed.”