Graduates Get Scholarship Money At Riverview Graduation Ceremony

BLOOMINGDALE-RIVERVIEW, FL — A physical graduation ceremony was held on Friday for graduating seniors of Kid's Community College Preparatory High School in Riverview.

It had been months since many of the students and families last saw each other because of the coronavirus pandemic. They wore masks and practiced social distancing at the ceremony as they listened to the founder and superintendent of Kid's Community College, Timothy Kilpatrick, give a speech of encouragement to the inaugural graduating class of 20 students.

“The richness and fullness of life isn’t found in the adversities and challenges," Kilpatrick said in his welcoming speech. "They are but weeds in the garden that can be plucked away, unless you allow them to become greater. You get to decide how you let things affect you and how much power they have in your lives. My advice, look to the good and grow. Rather than allowing the things you feel you may have lost in this unprecedented time to become weeds that take over the roots of your life, only allow those things to be small sections of a beautiful garden full of rich soil and a much, much greater narrative."

Many parents of the graduating seniors wanted the school to have a physical ceremony, a news release said. The school felt it had unique advantages during the coronavirus pandemic as they are a very small campus, and their graduating class had a size opposite of what is traditionally seen at a public high school ceremony in Hillsborough County.

In his closing address, Kilpatrick announced that each graduating senior will receive a cash scholarship based on the number of years the students have attended a Kid’s Community College school and provided stimulus money.

Graduating seniors also were given a chance to win an additional $5,000 scholarship opportunity for the “gardener” that showed the most promise over the next six months.

“Our NAF Preparatory High School has been providing its scholars with paid internships through community partnerships, the potential for college degrees and credits, early graduation— positioning our students for other advantages over their peers for three years,” said campus director Deidre Tucker.