PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — After surviving a pandemic, getting displacement because of asbestos, and mourning the recent death of a classmate, reaching graduation day is a special achievement for the nearly 200 members of the senior class at Mastery Simon Gratz High School.
Proud parents and school staff cheered as the Gratz Class of 2023 marched single-file into Marcus Foster stadium in Nicetown.
The ceremony marked the culmination of a troubled year for the 192 members of the senior class. A 15-year-old Gratz sophomore, Devin Weedon, was shot and killed near school in March, and the school endured a weeklong closure for asbestos removal.
Senior Ahzeem Grant said the pain of the city’s gun violence has left him emotionally numb.
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“I’m getting used to it. It’s like, I don’t cry about none of this no more,” he said. “I’m getting too used to everything.”
For senior Dani Harris, graduation day brought joy and a few tears, too.
“It’s bittersweet. I’m happy. but I’m going to miss my classmates,” she said.
Senior Jaliyah James said after a tumultuous year, it’s a relief to celebrate her graduation day. “Everything is like a breath of fresh air. It’s finally here,” she said.
It was a difficult year, but the school’s college adviser, Jade Doane, said Gratz students have had to persevere through their whole high school career.
“These were our ninth graders who only had half a year because of the pandemic. So their high school experience has truly been truncated, that they only had, I’m going to say, a year and a half of an actual high school experience,” Doane said.
“As you could see they persevered. And we’re getting them to the culmination of every high schooler’s big event. It’s graduation day and we’ve made it.”
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