The end of the 2023-24 school year brings not only separate graduation events for each of Wesley Chapel’s three local public high schools, but also the start of the Summer of 2024 for all local students.
You’d think that the calendar of events for our area would slow down as the summer kicks off, but there is still plenty to do in and around Wesley Chapel.
Saturday, May 25, 7 p.m.-11 p.m. — Jazz Night at The KRATE at The Grove Container Park.
Friday, May 31, 4 p.m.-6 p.m.. — The North Tampa Bay Chamber presents “Final Friday.” This free networking event will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn Tampa- Wesley Chapel (26640 Silver Maple Pkwy.).
Friday, May 31, 4 p.m. — Cypress Creek High Graduation Ceremony. At the USF Yuengling Center.
Friday, May 31, 7 p.m.-11 p.m. — R&B Night at The KRATE at The Grove Container Park. See story on next page.
Saturday, June 1, 5 p.m. — Wesley Chapel High Graduation Ceremony. At the USF Yuengling Center.
Monday, June 3, 5 p.m. — Wiregrass Ranch High Graduation Ceremony. At the USF Yuengling Center.
Friday, June 7, 5:30-9:30 p.m. — The Market Elaine. At the Village at The Grove, with 150+ vendors, free admission & free parking. For info, visit TheMarketElaine.com.
The pressure for many high school valedictorians can be stifling. While mostly grateful for finishing at the top of their respective classes, the journey is usually one that provides them with a sense of relief when they graduate.
But, Freedom High Class of 2022 valedictorian Pascale Carvalho says that, for her, there never was any pressure. She loved the journey. And, she has made putting in a ton of hours to earn her Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree from Hillsborough Community College and compiling an 8.5 high school grade point average actually sound, well, fun.
“I was never aiming for a certain spot,” Pascale says. “It was never motivation to do better in school. It was just a perk.”
From the very start of high school, which officially ends with graduation Thursday morning at 8 a.m. at the Florida State Fairgrounds, Pascale made sure to take classes she would enjoy, not just classes that would beef up her GPA.
Her freshman year, she took music theory because despite already playing the guitar (jazz fusion and rock) and cello — and cymbals in the high school band — she wanted to learn how to read music, too. And now, she writes her own music as well.
“It was an irreplaceable experience,” she says.
As a sophomore, Pascale took a heavy load of dual enrollment classes, because one of her major goals was to earn her A.A. degree prior to actually starting college. Her junior year, she took Japanese at the University of South Florida, because she had an interest in that culture and language.
Her senior year, Pascale took a pair of 4000-level health science classes at USF, another strong area of interest for her. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to do in college prior to her senior year, but her wide range of interests and classes has helped clarify that vision.
While undecided on which college she will attend, she is mulling over acceptance letters from the University of Southern California at Los Angeles, for its outstanding music composition programs, or Brown University in Providence, RI, or Washington University in St. Louis, for health sciences.
“My goal was just to give myself the best possible education I could, and provide myself with the best college opportunities, and that’s what I did,” she says.
The groundwork for a successful high school experience was laid by her family. Her parents Chantal and Daniel stressed education — Pascale laughs at the math books and essays Chantal assigned during the summer — and older brother Antoine, a Freedom grad, is at Boston University, while older sister Dominique recently graduated from USF after studying biological health science.
“They definitely emphasized being good at what you do,” Pascale says. “If you do anything, try to be the best at it.”
Pascale also strove to be her best, but was never consumed with her academic standing. “Being No. 1 is just one of those hoops you go through,” she says. “Once you reach it, (you should) look back, and see if your experience equates to that number. Because it should.”
Pascale’s high school experience also included athletics. While she couldn’t compete her sophomore and junior years due to an undiagnosed neurological problem, she still managed to play two seasons of soccer and, as a senior, was on the swimming and cross country teams.
While she ponders college, Pascale spends her spare time with friends, watching anime and playing her guitar.
But if you ask her to play a tune, don’t expect a rendition of “Sweet Home Alabama.” She didn’t take music theory and Japanese for nothing.
“Well, I like a lot of Japanese music,” she says, laughing, “so it’s probably going to be a random Japanese heavy metal song that nobody’s ever heard.”
Cypress Creek seniors practice graduation on May 25. (Photo: @CCHSHowler)
Pasco County is opening the doors wide open to graduation.
Pasco County Schools announced on Wednesday that high school graduates will be allowed to invite additional guests and family members to outdoor graduations, and social distancing at the events will no longer be required. The decision was made after reviewing COVID-19 data in schools and in the community.
Masks are still required for indoor graduations, however.
Cypress Creek (June 2, 7 p.m.), Wesley Chapel (June 4, 7 p.m.) and Wiregrass Ranch (June 3, 7 p.m.) are all holding graduation ceremonies in their football stadiums.
Prior to Wednesday’s announcement, high school graduates in Pasco County had been limited to four guests each. Now, graduates can have two guests join them seated on the field, with additional guests seated in the bleachers. Availability of seating will vary due to the size of the venue.
After reviewing data from the Pasco Department of Health and in light of the CDC’s recent relaxing of mask guidance, Superintendent Kurt Browning determined that the potential for harm has been greatly reduced in recent weeks as the county’s seven-day positivity rate recently declined to 4.6 percent, the lowest rate in nearly six months.
“It was our goal all along to make the graduation ceremonies as normal as possible, while recognizing our responsibility to protect the health and safety of all the graduates and guests,” said Superintendent Browning. “A lot has changed in recent weeks, and at this time we are confident that it is safe to remove those restrictions for our outdoor graduations.”
Wesley Chapel seniors celebrated their graduation on June 1 at The Grove.
As the Covid-19 pandemic took hold, the 2019-20 school year was forced to come to a premature end.
Senior year, which can be the best and sometimes most eventful year of a teenager’s life, ended with a whimper, instead of a bang.
High school sports, proms and Grad Bashes were canceled. Yearbooks were passed out through open car windows by folks wearing masks. Graduations were postponed until August. Final goodbyes among classmates would have to wait.
As the mother of a Wiregrass Ranch High senior, and the president of the Pasco County Council PTA, Denise Nicholas found it all to be a shame. So, she decided to do something.
With the help of all the PTAs across the county, a host of volunteers and the determination to give all of Pasco’ seniors a sendoff, Nicholas and a team of helpers organized a car parade for the outgoing seniors for every school in the county.
“I brought the idea to my (PTA) board and they were very excited about it,” Nicholas says. “And, we found people to help at each of the schools that do not have PTAs. The schools that do not have PTAs, we found people to help at each of those schools. We really wanted to give the same experience to every senior in the county.”
Here in Wesley Chapel, The Grove shopping center enthusiastically stepped up and offered a parade route in front of its shopping plaza after a few other sites declined.
Cypress Creek and Wiregrass Ranch high schools had their parades — which featured decorated cars and large groups of friends and family cheering along the parade route — on May 19 and 20, respectively, while Wesley Chapel High’s parade, which was delayed by rain, was held June 1.
“Obviously with the pandemic, the (way school ended) was very saddening for our students and their families,” said Monica Ilse, Ed.D., assistant superintendent for Pasco Schools. “But, Denise reached out and wanted to do something to provide some community support for the seniors, which we appreciate beyond words.”
Nicholas had no shortage of volunteers to pull off the project. Pasco County Commissioners Mike Moore and Ron Oakley agreed to introduce the seniors and serve as the parade emcees, local professional photographers Jess Montgomery and Paul Gigante took pictures, Makayla Gulash (aka DJ Night Mixer) provided the music, Troy Stevenson (of Acme On The Go multimedia) also contributed video trucks at each event, and former Tampa Bay Bucs tight end (and father to a Wiregrass Ranch sophomore) Anthony Becht also donated time and services.
Ilse said the county hopes to be able to hold traditional graduations in August at the Yuengling Center on the campus of the University of South Florida, but that will depend upon the CDC and the status of the pandemic. If they can’t be held, she thinks the car parades made a nice send off.
“I took my niece to the Wiregrass Ranch one, and she had a great time,” Ilse said. “It was a lot of fun.”
Nicholas said the smiling senior faces across the county helped end their final years on a happy note, which was her primary goal. “Bryce (her son) thought it was a great idea, but he had no idea how much he would enjoy it,” Nicholas says. “Seeing how his face lit up, to be able to drive in the parade and hear the horns and the cheering and see the signs….it was worth every second.”
Although it’s now wrapping up its second year, the “firsts” keep on rolling in for Cypress Creek Middle/High School (CCMH).
And, the honor of being one of the most significant firsts at the school certainly belongs to Lucas Budd, Cypress Creek’s first-ever class valedictorian, who on Wednesday, June 5 at, 8 p.m. at the University of South Florida Yuengling Center, will give the first-ever valedictorian speech to the first graduating class of 226 students in CCMH history.
“I will have my box of Kleenex ready,” says his proud mother, Brenda.
It was Brenda who first learned that Lucas was the Cypress Creek valedictorian. When she got the call, she couldn’t help but cry. Then she called to share the news with Lucas.
While Lucas knew his grades were going to put him near the top of the senior class, he was surprised by the news, but thrilled that his 4.577 weighted grade-point-average was No. 1 amongst the seniors.
Caitlin Scates was the 2019 class Salutatorian
“I wasn’t expecting it,” Lucas says. “It’s an honor, and I take a lot of pride in being Cypress Creek’s first valedictorian. I was pretty happy when I found out.”
Lucas has always been a great student, and actually began high school at Wiregrass Ranch High, before the district’s school borders were redrawn and he was zoned for Cypress Creek following his sophomore year.
Lucas never thought about being the valedictorian while he was at Wiregrass Ranch because he says the class ranks weren’t really publicized.
During his first year at Cypress Creek, however, he knew he ranked fairly high.
“I had seen that I was in the, maybe, top 5, but I wasn’t expecting to be valedictorian,” Lucas says. “I had never really thought about it, but of course every student who takes school serious would like to be valedictorian. I guess you could say it’s the ultimate goal.”
That’s why when other students would dodge the tougher classes, Lucas reveled in registering for them. “Everyone is capable of being the valedictorian,” Lucas says. “It’s just a matter of putting in the work. And sometimes, a little extra work.”
Lucas says he is proud of the way he balanced school with volunteering (more than 100 hours at St. Joseph Church) and his duties with club-related service involvement at school, which he says has positively impacted his view of community involvement.
“That was a great experience,” he says. “That’s one of the things I will remember most from high school.”
Academically, he is most proud of earning his Associate’s degree from Pasco Hernando State College (PHSC) as a dual enrollment student with a 4.0. He also has worked as a tutor at the PHSC Academic Success Center since last September, tutoring in English, Calculus, Biology, Statistics, Psychology, Chemistry, Anatomy and Physiology.
Lucas was awarded the National Hispanic Scholar by the College Board for scoring in the top 2.5 percent of high school juniors of Hispanis descent, and the National Merit Commended Scholar by the College Board for scoring in the top 3 percent of all juniors who took the PSAT as a junior.
Lucas spends his free time fishing in the lakes around the Stagecoach community he lives in, and particularly likes fishing for bass. The largest one he’s caught is 6-8 pounds, and when he’s not fishing, he is shooting hoops on the nearest basketball court.
A National Honor Society member at CCMH, and Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society at PHSC, Lucas will be attending the University of Florida in Gainesville in fall, where he hopes to study Biochemistry or Biomedical Engineering.
Brenda has taken great delight in listening to Lucas practice his valedictorian speech, which has been polished and is ready to go. She can’t wait until he shares it with the rest of his class.
“It’s inspirational, and it’s positive,” she says. “That’s just who he is.”
