William S. Hart High School’s nearly 500-member graduating class ended its high school career this week amid a labor market shakeup that’s changing the American workforce at a rapid clip.
But Hart Principal Jason d’Autremont isn’t worried about the future of the class of 2026.
“I know there’s a lot of concern about the future. Some are concerned about the rapid growth of technology, many warning that it could even take over, that critical thinking will disappear, or that there may not be a place for them in the world ahead,” d’Autremont said during his commencement address Tuesday. “But I challenge that idea.”
D’Autremont suggested his student audience think about their schooling at Hart High in terms of both academic success and character building: In the face of the uncertain shape of the adult world that waits for them, a Hart education is enough, if there’s a willingness to use it, he said.
“I stand firmly before you tonight to urge you to use what Hart High School has given you: the ability to think critically, to use reason to solve problems, and to do good in the world around you,” d’Autremont said.
“Technology may continue to evolve, and you may use it in your job or at school, but kindness, character, integrity, and thoughtful people will always be better.”
The audience of graduating students sitting on the College of the Canyons’ football field certainly demonstrated academic achievement: 126 senior honors scholars students in red robes, symbolizing a grade point average of 4.0 or higher, sat several rows deep at the head of the assembly.
In athletics, too, Hart had wins with which to end the year. D’Autremont congratulated Graysen Rivera on his first-place win in shot put during the California Interscholastic Federation track and field finals last week.
But while student commencement speaker Elliot Ward had lots to say to commend the class of 2026, she had a slightly different take on Hart’s last four years.
Not as an inculcation against the future, but a necessary part of its fumbling beginning.
“It takes time to understand not only those around you, but yourself,” Ward said. “That’s what high school is supposed to be about … It’s about learning to be functioning members of society, and discovering what we want to contribute to the world as we get older.”
