The East Williston School District reflected on recent losses while looking forward to opportunities ahead during the 65th Commencement Exercises for 159 graduates from The Wheatley School’s Class of 2022. 

Principal Sean Feeney, who will become assistant superintendent for Port Washington next school year, acknowledged the loss the community felt with senior Hasan Suleman’s recent death in an automobile accident.

“This is a class that arrives on this stage this morning forged in tragedy. The sudden death of Hassan Suleman just a few months before the celebratory events of these past few weeks shook our entire school and community to its core,” Feeney said at the Tilles Center. “It had a particularly profound impact on so many members of the Class of 2022.  The whirlwind of emotions associated with this loss — pain, sorrow, guilt, anger and loneliness to name a few — has weighed heavily on many of the graduates.” 

Suleman’s seat was left empty between classmates Nicholas Sookra and Kate Sullivan during the ceremony on Sunday, June 19, and his name was announced during the delivery of diplomas. 

Feeney implored the graduates to find a community that supports them in their post-Wheatley lives that will lift them up through adversity. 

“I asked you to look around on this stage and in the auditorium to see those who can support you through hard times,” Feeney said. “Thank you all for what you’ve done for Wheatley these past five years and congratulations on your graduation today. We will miss you but we know you are ready for what the future brings.”

Class Vice President Declan Brady in his honor essay titled “The Wheatley Way” encapsulated what the school motto meant and how the class of 2022 collectively brings meaning to it. 

Brady said The Wheatley Way was bonding through trouble collectively during a bed bug outbreak in eighth grade and the “unfettered dedication” towards winning the class showdown.

“While we may or may not have the stereotypical football game type of school spirit that you see in the movies, it’d be hard to find a group of seniors who get more excited about accomplishing a shared goal than Wheatley students during showdown week,” Brady said. “There is no one person sitting here today that fully embodies all these ideas. After all, The Wheatley way isn’t a product of individual achievements or accomplishments, but rather a result of the contributions and actions of a collective group.”

Tyler Horowitz, who read her “I Have an Answer” essay, shared her experiences at Wheatley, saying that her fellow classmates are role models to her. 

“Role models are defined as people who others look up to or have traits that make them good people and what others try to be like, and this is what the class of 2022 was to me,” Horowitz said. “No matter how much we’ve been through together, we always have each others’ backs and learn how to adapt and rise back up again.”

Jeremy Kang spoke on the specificity the word “the” provides to Wheatley, which is named officially The Wheatley School. 

“There’s an aspect of singularity in that name. Something individual, something unique, something intriguing. ‘The’ is the single most commonly used word in the English language,” Kang said. “Simply because it’s ‘The Wheatley School’ our sense of community and connection with one another is reinforced. The Wheatley School fosters student groups unknown to other high schools and enables intricate student-teacher relationships that wouldn’t be possible at an average high school.”

Welcoming remarks were given to the class by co-presidents Siddhant Jain and Emilia Keys. Two musical performances were given by Julian Chang on the cello, Joyce Chen on the violin, and Andrew Kim on the viola with Krittika Prajapati singing “Breakaway” accompanied by Rick Wilson of the English Department.

Lucas Schmuck was honored with the David K. Israel Scholarship, intended for students pursuing a career in teaching. Maia Cale received the Jann Ann Smith Citizenship Award from Board of Education Vice President Robert Fallarino. 

In her final address to the district before her retirement, Superintendent Elaine Kanas gave graduates an overview of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey

Kanas told graduates to be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek to understand, then to be understood, synergize and sharpen the saw. 

“I hope this relatively brief summary piques your interest in reading the book, as it contains many touching and meaningful stories,” Kansas said. “In the meantime, many congratulations and best wishes to you and your families on this very special day.”