Bishop Garcia Diego High School celebrated the academic careers of nearly 60 students during a commencement ceremony held at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse’s Sunken Garden on Saturday.
The graduating class, wearing red and white caps and gowns, marched across the damp grass as cheering family, friends, Cardinal alumni and other supporters stood next to their chairs.
The annual ceremony included an invocation from Marisa Mancinelli at the start of the gathering, followed by the presentation of colors by the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps and Santa Barbara AIRPAC Squadron, as well as the Pledge of Allegiance, and the national anthem delivered by graduating seniors Olivia Cunningham and Lauren Holsted.
Head of school Karen Regan welcomed the large crowd and spoke highly of the graduating class’ accomplishments.
“Graduates, we are proud of sharing your successes — having received admission to 115 colleges and universities, with over $5.5 million in scholarships and $40,000 of that being awarded from our local Santa Barbara community,” she said.
“You represent the best and the brightest.”
The Class of 2019 fulfilled more than 10,725 hours of community service, she said, adding, “graduates, you have made a difference.”
The high school seniors’ actions both in and outside of the classroom are a true testament to the “core values of respect, perseverance and compassion,” Regan said.
She congratulated the students for earning their high school diplomas and urged the seniors to “treasure this day” and the four years of high school memories.
Many students have been admitted to notable colleges around the nation, among them Westmont College, Chapman University, UCLA, USC, New York University and others.
Bishop Diego, a private Catholic school at 4000 La Colina Road in Santa Barbara, has provided more than 100 years of secondary education, and continues to serve students at the school with “passion, vibrancy and faith,” Regan said.
This year’s valedictorian and salutatorian both were active students and community members during their time at Bishop Diego.
Student athlete Katherine Benzian, who is headed to the USC’s Roski School of Art and Design, was valedictorian. She received a dean’s merit scholarship and is planning to major in art, design and business.
Benzian was a member of Bishop Diego’s track, tennis, softball and golf teams. She also is an active nonprofit volunteer in the local community, serving at Hearts Therapeutic Equestrian Center, Santa Barbara Safety Town and the annual art walk at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, school officials said.
Jose Eslta, who will be attending Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., to study mechanical engineering, was named salutatorian. He earned more than $400,000 in merit scholarships, according to school officials.
Among his many accomplishments, he served as a peer tutor at the school and earned a Bishop Diego community service award for volunteering more than 200 hours, many of which were devoted to serving at the nonprofit PATH, People Assisting The Homeless.
Saturday’s commencement speaker was Matthew Bennett, who completed his fifth year teaching in the science department at Bishop Diego. He instructed several classes, including astronomy, physics and innovation and design.
He also participated in several high school senior retreats and served on committees geared toward school improvement.
Bennett is pursuing his Ph.D. in science education in the fall at UC Santa Barbara, meaning this year is his final at Bishop Diego.
“My encouragement is simple — be as present as you can,” he told the graduating class. “Be deliberate. Choose what you are doing, and go out and learn things. Read good books, articles and magazines. Listen to podcasts and talk about them.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
