Graduation set for Saturday, June 9

The single most important activity at PSCS, the activity in which the values and nature of PSCS are on full display, is our graduation ceremony. It takes place this year on Saturday, June 9, from 9:00 am–3:00 pm and is being held at the Bathhouse Theater at Green Lake (7312 W. Greenlake Dr. N. Seattle, 98103).

If you plan to attend, it’s very important to be present and on time for graduation. Once you’ve attended one, you’ll understand. But if you have never attended and your child is not one of those being honored, you may be wondering why you should devote six hours of your time to this on a spring Saturday in Seattle.

Why? Because you get to not only see but experience the PSCS environment, what we call the product of a PSCS education and what we believe makes the school unlike any other. You will walk away from the ceremony better understanding PSCS. You’ll want to hug someone. Someone will want to hug you. That’s why you should come.

The event begins at 9:00 am, thus providing a few minutes of socializing and time for people to take their seats. At 9:30, this year’s host, PSCS board member and volunteer Judy Blair, chosen by the seniors, will speak. After that, Judy will guide us through the process of honoring each of the five students being recognized at this year’s graduation ceremony, the four seniors (Eden, Jared, Tynor, and Simon) who have completed the senior year and will be awarded a diploma, and the one student (Maddie) who has worked tremendously hard to have a culminating year at PSCS, one that the staff feel is worthy of recognition at this ceremony.

We honor each student one at a time using the following structure. Each of the five students have selected someone to introduce them to the community. Following that introduction, each student stands before the community to share her/his credo. After that, each student receives approximately 40 minutes of unfacilitated, focused appreciation from the community. School director Andy Smallman then presents each student her/his diploma. Everyone applauds.

It is a spectacular thing to witness and to participate in. One parent, after participating in his first PSCS graduation ceremony, said, “PSCS would be inundated with students if people could see this.”

In terms of the order, we’ll be following this schedule:

9:00 — doors open / socialize / take seats
9:30 — event starts promptly
Eden, Maddie, Jared honored (in that order)
12:00ish — potluck lunch
1:00 — reconvene
1:15 —event resumes, starts promptly—Tynor, Simon honored
3:00ish — we’re done

Note that lunch is listed as a potluck so we are counting on everyone bringing food to share. Please bring your own drinks, plates & utensils. The potluck will take place on the grass just outside the Bathhouse.

Hope to see you there!