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Middletown High School's 328 graduates might not have officially received their diplomas until 1 p.m. Wednesday, but the senior class started their celebrations when school ended May 24.

"When the bell rang [May 24] there was screaming," said Jenna Capobianco, a senior, about the last day for seniors. "People were tearing down streamers. I didn't think I would be ready, but as soon as I made my college decision, I was ready to go."

Capobianco, 17, is one of two planned student speakers at graduation, and will attend Messiah College in Pennsylvania to study English and psychology in the fall, she said.

"I really like writing," she said of auditioning to be a speaker. "I've taken creative writing for two years. I just went for it and I got it."

Though she said she was excited to be leaving high school, especially at the thought of "never taking calculus again," she said she appreciated all the experiences she had as a student at Middletown High.

"[I'll miss] the opportunities we had in high school," she said. "We won't have that every day. It's hard to notice when you're there, but they're there.

Fellow senior Ashley Higginbothem, 18, said she will attend Charleston Southern University in South Carolina in the fall to study nursing and play volleyball.

"It feels really good," she said last week. "I feel ready to graduate. Middletown's been really good to me, but I'm ready [to move on]."

But she also has some sadness at leaving. Higginbothem was a member of Middletown's volleyball and swim teams, and said she would miss her friends and teammates. "[I'll miss] the friends I've had and the experiences I've had on various athletic teams," she said.

Principal Jay Berno is plenty excited too.

"It's probably the most rewarding time of the year," Berno said. "And I say that because there are so many accomplishments that have occurred throughout the year that you just don't collectively have knowledge about. And this is the time of year it's brought to attention through the awards ceremony. ... It's really, really rewarding to see this as a principal, that students have accomplished so many things."

Berno also praised the local community, which he said offered tremendous support to the school and student body over the course of the school year.

"I will say this about the Middletown, Myersville, Wolfsville communities – they really support this school," he said. "The things required to be successful in this world require a lot of education that can't be done just during the regular school day. It requires people out there saying ‘keep doing that.'"

Berno said he was excited to see the seniors graduating.

"This graduating class is really phenomenal," he said. "They're just a great group of kids."

tlaino@gazette.net