It didn’t take long for the excitement of nearly 1,000 soon-to-be Pittsburgh Public School graduates to boil over Tuesday morning, their cheers and chants loud as they celebrated the end of their high school careers and future college plans.
During the eighth annual Senior Celebration Day at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall in Oakland, students were honored for their accomplishments while in high school and praised for their plans that will take them to more than 150 higher education institutions and trade schools.
“It’s an honor,'' 18-year-old Trinidy Manison, who is graduating from Milliones and will attend Penn State’s main campus next year, said before the event. “I’m really happy because I’m celebrating with PPS seniors as well. It’s an honor to be here. I’m super excited, I’m super excited we have so many kids going to college. It’s amazing.”
The celebration was hosted by the Pittsburgh Promise, a nonprofit organization that funds scholarships for qualifying Pittsburgh Public students to help cover the cost of a post-secondary education, while preparing them for life after high school through programs such as the Promise Coach program.
“It’s important to celebrate but it’s the culmination of hard work and planning,” said Saleem Ghubril, the Pittsburgh Promise’s executive director. “The three words that the Pittsburgh Promise was built around are to help students prepare, plan and pay for post-secondary education.”
Throughout the event, students — many of whom wore T-shirts and hats reflecting the colleges they will attend after graduation — received raffle prizes and played several games of Jeopardy that caused teens sitting in the audience to scream answers to students representing each of the district’s high schools and online academy.
The space quickly turned into a party, colorful lights flashing across the stage and music played by DJ Femi bumping in the background as the teens waved blue pompoms and rooted for each other. Others met and took pictures with the Pittsburgh Pirates mascot, the Pirate Parrot.
It was also attended by school Directors Gene Walker, Sylvia Wilson and Tracey Reed, and Superintendent Wayne Walters, who told graduating seniors that the event was a “celebration of your journeys and bright futures” and a “testimonial to the choices you are making.”
While the event was filled with excitement for the future, it came months after the Pittsburgh Promise in September sent a reminder to families stating that it would grant its final dollars in five years to the class of 2028. The reminder, which was first announced in 2015 and discussed last April when the promise touted its partnership with UPMC, quickly led to pushback from the community who questioned why the funding was ending and expressed anger that their children would not benefit from the program.
But, Mr. Ghubril said Tuesday, while the scholarship program is coming to an end, the Pittsburgh Promise is staying. Rather than focusing on funding scholarships, the organization will shift to an advocacy role that will work to change public policy.
“The mere existence of the Pittsburgh Promise is evidence of public policy failure,” Mr. Ghubril said. “We have the second-most expensive public university system in the country and the second-least funded university system. It’s absurd to me. I don’t know how officials can sleep at night knowing that for many of our kids it’s cheaper for them to pay out of state in Ohio than in state in Pennsylvania.”
He noted that the promise is “actively involved” with elected officials from both political parties as they work through several post-secondary funding plans.
In addition to taking on an advocacy role, the Pittsburgh Promise will also continue to offer the Promise Coach program, which provides personal career exploration, mental strengthening and interventions to every high school student. The program is currently offered at Carrick, Milliones and Perry high schools. It will expand to Westinghouse in the fall.
That was key for Ms. Manison who said she was “a little bit sad” about the scholarships ending “because the upcoming classes won’t get it, but I feel like Pittsburgh Promise needs more coaches in schools, so it’s not that sad because they’re still able to help people with additional scholarships as well.”
Ms. Manison, who plans to study criminal justice, said she meets with her coach about twice a week. Recently, her coach helped her go through her financial aid offer from Penn State and has encouraged her to stay on top of her classwork in the past.
“It’s been amazing,” Ms. Manison said. “He and my mom have a great relationship as well. They’re parent-oriented, student-oriented. He sometimes stays on top of me more than my teachers. … I just love it.”
Science and Technology Academy student Jay Shank, 18, noted that the Pittsburgh Promise helped her expand her options when considering colleges. Now, Ms. Shank plans to attend Allegheny College, where she will study English writing with a minor in education.
“It was nice to be recognized for sure. … It’s nice as a senior to be ‘woo-hoo, go seniors,’ ” Ms. Shank said of the event.
Tuesday’s celebration was also attended by Donta Green, executive director of the Trade Institute of Pittsburgh and head coach of Westinghouse’s football team. He gave several tips to students such as not being afraid to commit to relationships, surrounding yourself with people who care and not shying away from adversity.
“I’m so proud of each and every one of you,” Mr. Green said.
Mr. Ghubril rounded out the event by having the seniors turn to each other and say things such as “you are incredible” and “you are amazing.”
“The Pittsburgh Promise is not the scholarship,” Mr. Ghubril said. “The Pittsburgh Promise is not the coaching. The Pittsburgh Promise is not the organization. The Pittsburgh Promise is every student that lives and breathes. You are Pittsburgh’s promise.”
First Published: April 30, 2024, 6:44 p.m.
Updated: May 1, 2024, 9:47 a.m.
