On June 19 — a day marking both personal milestones and national history — Hopewell Valley Central High School held its 2025 Commencement Ceremony, celebrating the achievements of 261 graduates in a class defined by resilience, growth, and shared hope for the future.
Held indoors after weather challenges forced multiple location changes, the evening included remarks from district leaders, school officials, and student speaker Colleen Marko, whose metaphor of flight captured both the uncertainty and possibility ahead.
“This class has taught me to expect the unexpected,” said Principal Patricia Riley, who praised students for embracing the final curveball — a last-minute switch from an outdoor ceremony — with grace and positivity. “Instead of being upset because things weren’t as they might have expected, they chose to embrace it with joy and support.”
Superintendent Dr. Rosetta Treece reminded students that the day also marked Juneteenth, the federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. Drawing on her own family’s history — including a great-grandmother born into slavery and parents who lived through segregation — Treece framed the moment as both personal and civic. “As Patriots, we should be proud that our democracy is the longest surviving in the history of humankind,” she said. “But our fight for freedom is not over.”
Treece also urged graduates to register to vote, adding, “Your voice deserves to be heard. Please make sure that it is.”
Board of Education President Anita Williams Galiano echoed the Juneteenth message, calling the ceremony “a celebration of achievement, growth, and promise.” She praised the class for its perseverance through adversity. “You’ve crossed a finish line that is also a starting point,” she said. “Your gift to the world will be your evolution — the way you grow, adapt, speak out, lift others up, and lead with heart.”
Student speaker Colleen Marko, who plans to study aviation, delivered a heartfelt address likening life after graduation to flying into unknown skies. “Dreams aren’t always a straight line,” she said. “The weather might change. The route might shift. And the destination could end up being somewhere entirely different than we planned. What matters is having the courage to keep flying — one mile, one decision, one day at a time.”
Marko reflected on how the COVID-19 pandemic shaped their formative years, with her class entering high school amidst virtual learning and uncertainty. “That experience taught us how to change our trajectory when needed, how to stay connected through the rough patches, and how to keep climbing even when the path ahead wasn’t clear.”
Treece formally certified the class, and Riley presented them for graduation. “Although there will also be things that are unexpected, there are also a few things that I want to make sure you expect and that I want to make sure you believe,” Riley said. “I want you to believe that you are loved, that you will be missed, and that you will always have a home here at HVCHS.”
Photos courtesy of Mike Schwartz. You can find a gallery from the HVCHS 2025 graduation here.
Meet the Class of 2025
Below is the full list of Hopewell Valley Central High School’s graduating Class of 2025:
- Erisa Ademi
- Anusha Agarwal
- Tyler Ananian
- Ava G Angelini
- Joshua O Angwenyi
- Lukas Charles Ansari
- Lilla Cecilia Antal
- William Anthony Antoun
- Kaj Armendinger
- Reidun Armendinger
- Agathe Arnaud
- Benjamin Anyi Ault
- Gianna Victoria Azara
- Aryan Aziz
- Sofia Babu
- Jonathan Baczyk
- Reuben Lewis Bangerter
- Charlotte Victoria Barnes
- Matthew Oliver Barzilai
- Connor Christian Batcha
- Matthew Robert Belsky
- Alexander L Berez
- Nathaniel Benjamin Berman
- Jackson T Blackwell
- Josephine Lovett Blankstein
- Alejandro Antonio Boccumini
- Alexis Michelina Boguslawski
- Isis Kai Bonacci
- Jose Borreguero
- Paige C Bovenizer
- W Jett Branagh
- Lilian Claire Brennan
- Quinn J Brennan
- Charlie Spencer Brooks
- Sydney Alexis Brown
- Fiona Grace Burke
- Emily Ann Butterfoss
- Luke D Caldwell
- Logan Everett Camilleri
- Giada Josephine Caracausi
- Mackenzie Rose Carroll
- Sierra Mei Chow
- McKenna Ann Cliver
- Morgan Elizabeth Cliver
- David Charles Coales
- Zachary Logan Conklin
- Emma Elizabeth Cook
- Irina Wind Cowles
- Kate E Coyer
- James Thomas Crawford
- Eli Cole Croner
- Megan Emelia D’Alessandro
- Florin Cecily Daly
- Sarah Jean Daniels
- Seraphina Mary DaPonte
- Ethan R Darst
- Bennett Arthur DeCore
- Chloe May DeFilippi
- Harry Joseph DeFilippi
- Mia Rose DeFilippi
- Joseph Thomas Demareski
- Bethia Demissie
- Ella Rose DePaolo
- Milan I Desai
- Kayla Ceil Dewolf
- Thomas Edwin DiMucci
- Shreya Dinesh
- James Ryland Dixon
- Angelo Henry Dominick
- Peterson Lexington Dorner
- Lucas Reese Dorsky
- Maxime Ethan Dubois
- Romane Duconge
- Claire Olivia Dumont
- Joseph William Dunbar
- Srikar V Dusi
- Blake Echternacht
- Flynn Ravello Phoenix Ellery
- John E Ellis
- Emily Yiting Fang
- Ethan Zvi Fastag-Rosenfield
- John William Ferguson
- Kathryn Anne Finn
- Sam Philip Finnegan
- Megan Rose Flanders
- Caroline Elizabeth Flannery
- Ryan Matthew Foret
- Jack H Gabe
- Sophia Allise Gadsby
- Amoretto Tony Gentile
- James Ian Owen Gibbings
- Daniel Robert Golian
- Gabriel Jacob Golkov
- Daniel Gonzalez-Jerez
- William Jeffrey Graf
- Nathan William Gross
- Angelo L Guarino
- Rahini Gubbala
- Dylan A Guerard
- Andrew Halko
- Bryce A Hanley
- Luke Matthew Harjes
- Cassidy Jane Hartman
- Konrad Noah Haugeto
- Matilda Patience Hearle
- Dylan Xavier Hernandez Olivares
- Christopher Jacob Heyman
- Leilani Alexis Hill
- Alejandro Jeffrey Hiraldo
- Ella Mae Hoch
- Abigail Rita Hogan
- Violet Camille Hollar
- Sarah Horlowski
- Fisher Davis Hoskin
- William Huang
- Raina Moore Jablonski
- Justin John Jamieson
- Liam S Jensen
- McKenzie K Jones
- Zaid Kamran
- Daanish Kashif
- Amaan K Kathawala
- Erik Leroy Katzenbach
- Declan John Kavanaugh
- Riley Francis Kerr
- Kyle Evan Kingsland
- Justin Charles Klotz
- Amelia F Klun
- Hayden Joseph Kostoplis
- Michalina Kubiak
- Lola K Kumar
- Jason R Laliwala
- Jack Tyler LaRaus
- Max Adam Lawruszkiewicz
- Tobias John Lear
- Erin Christian Lee
- Julia Lee
- Owen Christopher Lengle
- Parker Sam Leonardi
- Gavin Ward Lewis
- Dongxuan Li
- Andrew Lin
- Chloe Micah LiVecchi
- Juliana C Lomma
- Olivia Rose Loutfi
- Hanna Lvov
- Tyler Edward Mac
- Maggie Olivia Maclean
- Dean Andrew Mantuano
- Ben Elijah Marciante
- Colleen Rose Marko
- Massimo S Matticoli
- Aynsley K Mauldin
- Clara Jeraldine Mayer
- Avery Lynn McDonald
- Dylan James McIntosh
- Kaitlyn E Means
- Dean Meissner
- Pranjal Mhetre
- Harper E Midtlyng
- Alexander D Mihaylov
- Chase A Miller
- Tomas Moledo
- Kalle Rochelle Morgan
- Brendan C Muenster
- Alexandra Paige Mulvihill
- Michael Anthony Muscente
- Nolan Louis Muscente
- Matviy Yuriy Mykytyn
- Nandan Ajith Nair
- Andrew Joseph Nalbone
- Gavin Michael Nau
- Matthew Dinh Nguyen
- Jacob Aidan Niedzwiecki
- Liam Jack Norton
- Joaquin Thomas O’Toole
- Rohan Kalyat Panoli
- Giuseppe Francis Panzitta
- Sophia Saena Park
- Yash P Patel
- Aryan K Pathak
- Rishika Patnam
- Ethan Morgan Peck
- Oliver Giuseppe Pendenza
- Kevin James Petrillo
- Thien Ahn Pham
- Matteo Clarence Piccarillo
- Brisly Anelis Pineda Briones
- Nina Plazonic
- Ethan Michael Podrazik
- Caitlyn Rae Potter
- Nicholas Chase Pozsony
- Daniel Ross Pszczolkowski
- Elijah Puran
- Francesca Grace Radzicki
- Zidaan Arzish Rahman
- Jacqueline Irene Ramos Rudder
- Mathilda Rose Ramos-Williams
- Reese T Reilly
- Zoe June Reznik
- Maxxe F Rice
- Ethan Daniel Rich
- Brendan Michael Riewe
- Ty Hashikawa Riordan
- Zahra Ali Rizvi
- Sophia Irene Rodefeld
- Carlos Joseph Rojas
- Darius Alexander Roman
- Gabriel Rhys Rosko
- Jacob J Rydzy
- Samaira Sachdeva
- Joseph Beck Salvatore
- Elliott Mark Scherbekow
- Leo Dylan Schmidt
- Bennett Alexander Schroeder
- Henry Ellsworth Seas
- Om Girish Sharma
- Owen Jeffrey Shehab
- Sabrina Anne Simone
- Nicholas Christopher Skibik
- David Joseph Steward
- Joshua Adam Stopper
- Francesca R Stroop
- Grace Marie Sullivan
- Shane Francis Sullivan
- Elena Sverdlova
- Julia Szymanik
- Fareid Ahmed Tatanaki
- Robert Bradford Taylor
- Emanuel James Sharlin Thacher
- Koga Jay Tierney
- Ava Jordan Trager
- Jonathan Witt Trainor
- Maria Trujillo Mesa
- Colin James Turnbull
- Yaelis Adrianna Ucci
- Michael Vagott
- John Joseph Valenza
- Cole James Vaughn
- Ricardo Maximo Vega
- Mahisvi Vemulapalli
- Gloria Lucia Vittadello
- Darius Evan von Stappenbeck
- James Albert Wagner
- Aiden S Walsh
- Franklin Wang
- Kayla Autumn Warren
- Tabitha Rose Webster
- Zachary Jordan Weisenfeld
- Owen Loc Wemple
- Robert Jimmy White
- Cormac David Wilenius
- Marcus Alexander Willoughby
- Angelynn C Wilson
- Haylee Corinne Wisinski
- Dylan Thomas Yasher
- Zoey Qing Yu
- Zoey He Zeng
- Edward H Zhang
- Sophia Zhang
- Anna Zhao
