VALEDICTORY ADDRESS Roger Zurawicki

Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished faculty, administrators, friends and family, and of course the graduating Class of 2012, good evening. Before I begin, I wanted to promise you guys that Id avoid any clichs. Its not like through the halls of Medford High, walk the best students in the nation. Can I call this moment bittersweet or does everybody already know that? Can I at least say YOLO? You know, this afternoon, after I put on my cap and gown, I listened to that new song by Carly Rae Jepsen, you know, Call Me Maybe. So, I was dancing in front of my mirror and then it hit me: Woah, Im finally graduating high school today. Just four years ago, I was this little freshman dork carrying an oversized backpack. And now well at least Im taller. Tonight we celebrate a transition, a bridge between the accomplishments of our twelve years in school and our many future successes to come. I could not be more proud to be a part of the Class of 2012. Before I continue, its given that we need to thank a few people: first of all, our families, for their unconditional love and support; our teachers, some of whom are here with us tonight, who are experts at what they do and to whom we owe a great deal; Dr. Krueger and the rest of the

administrators, who do a terrific job of running Medford High; but, most importantly, I need to thank the stars of tonights show. Thats you, 2012. As a prominent, avant-garde musician once said, WE DA BEST! We truly are. 2012. We are sitting among the next doctors, carpenters, lawyers, public officials, and WalMart executives. As a class, one of our best qualities is the willingness to collaborate rather than compete. We respect each others work. We are unified in that we learn together. We learn with each other and from each other. This is a talent that we should never forget. I want these words to be heartfelt, so I need everyone in the audience to raise their right hand. On the count of three, thats my count, I want you to lay your hand on the shoulder of the person sitting to your right. 1,2,3 Okay, you can let go. Now I can now officially say that the audience has been touched by this graduation moment. Throughout high school, I hope that you have experienced the power of collaboration. It is so important because this is a skill that we will use in college, in service, at work, and for the rest of our lives. This class has put on amazing shows and performances, and has achieved much though collaboration. Our sport teams include many GBL champions and are shining examples of what teamwork is, and what it can achieve. Who can forget our drama club, who put on a hilarious performance of The Drowsy Chaperone? And I could not respect more the ensemble to my left. This band works hard year-round rehearsing together, and last month they took second place at the Music in the Parks Festival. But the benefits of collaboration are not limited to high school. Collaboration runs deep in the veins of our nations history. If the delegation of colonial lawyers never met in Philadelphia to draft the Declaration of Independence, would the thirteen colonies ever have been united? A few years later, it would take a similar assembly to create the United States Constitution. In the 1940s, the Allies won World War II not only because of the soldiers in Europe, but also because of the cryptographers in Washington and the women in our factories. Later, when our influence was threated by Soviet advancements in satellite technology, we came together, thousands of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians, and we landed a man on the moon. The Civil Rights movement in this country was led my Dr. Martin Luther King, but, without his supporters, Dr. King would have stayed in jail. Such collaborative efforts have resulted in many of the privileges that we take for granted. A decade ago, two men, Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger, had a lofty, idealistic vision. They were inspired to combine the entire knowledge of the human race into one, free, online encyclopedia. Today, if you dont know what Wikipedia is, then you must have never written a research paper before. 2012, wherever you go, almost every job description today includes the words strong interpersonal communication skills. In the military, collaboration is simply expected. Every scientific endeavor, from curing cancer to stopping global warming, involves a vastly collaborative effort. Individuals alone cannot solve the problems of tomorrow. No one is good at everything, but when we work with others, we compensate for each others weaknesses. When I walked the halls of MHS, I was proud to see my classmates helping each other with their

homework. In this example, we became not only a tutor to our classmates but also a tutor to ourselves. When you leave this building, remember our talent, and consider these words from Henry Ford: If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.