Hatboro-Horsham Grads Embark on Next Chapter

On Monday night, before a packed crowd of proud family and friends, the 387-member Hatboro-Horsham High School class of 2013 set out on the next page of its collective journey.

Before bidding his alma mater's graduating class farewell, Principal Dennis Williams Jr. pondered aloud, "So, what's next?" Williams' musing, for all of its consideration in his roughly 10-minute speech, did not have a straight forward answer. 

"It doesn't matter what's next because you're a Hatter and you can handle it all," Williams said moments before a sea of red and black caps sailed through the high school's gymnasium.

Valedictorian Anthony Frederick Mei–who outscored Salutatorian Ryan Christopher Duffy by .003 of a point for the opportunity to address his fellow classmates–described high school as a "massive melting pot."

"I hope we never forget high school's sacred lesson: Connection," Mei said. "Make a connection and see how life opens up."

Mei shared a story about volunteering on Christmas day and the impact a man he was helping to feed, had made on him. 

" 'Kid, you could be Bruce Lee. Just follow your dreams and you could be anything,' " Mei reflected on what the man had told him during his speech. "That nameless man built a lasting impression. He helped me more than I could have ever helped him."

Superintendent Curtis Griffin encouraged the class of 2013 to remember two phrases for success: "Please" and "thank you."

"Thank you can be a game changer," Griffin said. 

If the statistics that Williams shared Monday are any indication, the senior class knows how to mind its manners. The class collectively secured $6.1 million in college scholarships and grants, which is almost $2 million more than in 2012, according to Williams. 

Of the 387 graduates, Williams said 93 percent are attending a two or four-year college or university; 6 percent have already secured gainful employment; and the remaining 1 percent intend to join the military. 

Board member Kelley Winters, whose daughter Clare is among the graduating class, shared the history of the Hatter mascot and how the factory where hats were made more than 250 years ago relates to Hatboro-Horsham School District products.

"Our factory's end products are each of you," Winters said, adding that each student, under the factory that is Hatboro-Horsham, has his or her own unique attributes. "We do not mass-produce large quantities of the same product."