Jointly reported by:
Khoo Xin Yi Sr1ScA
Grace Low Shing Wei Sr2ScA
Photography by:
Tan Yong Kang Sr2ScF
Albeit alone, stars shine on with everlasting pride and glory, and so will the graduating students of 2021. On the 8th of January, the graduates of Kuen Cheng High School bid each other a final farewell during the 65th Graduation Ceremony at Top Happiness Grand Ballroom. Though parents were not allowed to participate physically due to SOP, it was nevertheless a momentous occasion to see their children graduating from high school through online streaming via YouTube.
The grand ballroom was filled with decorative flowers and dazzling chandeliers, bringing a luxurious tone to the ceremony. Graduates were each given a flower-shaped collar badge and a flower brooch as well. 10 minutes before the ceremony started, a video collage was played in remembrance of the events the graduates participated in past years.
With the ceremony starting at 10 am, graduates and teachers alike welcomed the Board of Governors into the ballroom. Everyone then rose from their seats as the National Anthem and School Anthem played. Right after, a speech was delivered by the Chairman of the Board of Governors, Tan Sri William Cheng Heng Jem. He congratulated all the graduates for finishing their secondary education and gave his blessings, encouraging them to keep going further in life.
Up next, the Principal, Dr. Chua Lee Lee, went onstage to give her speech, saying that it was an honour for Kuen Cheng High School to have been the guiding star for the graduates. Their senior years were full of face masks, social distancing, Zoom classes, and cancelled plans, but they handled all of the challenges that came their way with courage and grace. At the end of her speech, she hoped for the graduates to always remember the school and visit in the future.
Chairman Tan Sri William Cheng Speech Presentation
Principal Chua Lee Lee Speech Presentation
Afterwards, the Chairman was invited to hand out graduation certificates to class representatives. Graduation gifts were then presented to each class in the form of booklets designed as Kuen Cheng Graduate Passports, along with stickers featuring events they had participated in before the pandemic.
Moving on, Academic Excellence Awards were handed out to the top 5 students of each study stream. The Board Director, Madam Chow Sow Fong, was also invited onstage to hand out awards for graduates who were under service clubs. Then, graduates who brought honour to the school in co-curricular competitions were awarded, with graduates representing the members of their clubs to receive the awards.
Following up, a mock cheque with a total fund of RM104,879.86 was presented and donated to the School, all raised by the graduating students to show their appreciation.
Mock Cheque of RM104,879.86
The President of the Graduation Ceremony Organizing Committee, Kwan Jia Huey, then gave a speech to thank all the teachers and parents of the graduates. She mentioned that the theme of the ceremony was 《熠》, which meant to shine like stars even when apart from each other. The word 《熠》 also shares the same pronunciation as the “忆(yì)” in “回忆”, which symbolised the memories graduates held together. The President ended her speech by reminding graduates of the events they participated in before the pandemic, then wishing them a blessed graduation.
President Kwan Jia Huey Speech Presentation
After the speech came a gratitude segment where a memorable video was played, including pictures from various events collaged into it. A compilation of students thanking teachers, parents, and friends was then displayed, emphasizing the importance of everyone’s roles in the graduates’ lives. There was also a short compilation of teachers saying their final goodbyes in class before the video ended.
As a sign of appreciation, two representatives came onstage before signalling for all the graduates to rise and bow to the teachers, Board Members, and parents. 10 graduates then led the singing of the graduation songs for the ceremony, giving a live performance of both 《骊歌》“Farewell Song” and 《破晓》“Breaking Dawn”, the latter being a self-composed song by the group.
Live Performance of Graduation Songs
Before ending the graduation ceremony, bouquets of flowers were given to the members of the Board of Governors and class teachers. However, even with the ceremony coming to an end, the graduates still yearned for more time to spend with each other, quickly prompting an encore of some classic graduation songs while graduates roamed around the ballroom in search of their friends.
As the atmosphere was once again filled with sentiment, it became apparent that many were unwilling to leave the ballroom, unwilling to leave their high school lives behind. Graduates were determined to find their friends, clamouring for attention here and there, wanting to take pictures together and exchange gifts. Flowers and chocolates were passed around as a final parting gift before the cluster of shining stars had to find their own allocations within the galaxies, bringing the 65th Graduation Ceremony of Class 2021 to its final farewell.
