Class of 2015: Dundee-Crown High School seniors graduate, principal departs after 9 years

HOFFMAN ESTATES – The significance of the day didn't strike Aaron Caldwell until he was walking through a large arena in his vibrant blue robe, listening to that emblematic song.

“It didn’t really hit me until I walked in and heard ‘Pomp and Circumstance,’” the newly graduated Dundee-Crown High School alumnus said. “I feel good now. I’m just happy this is all over because there was a lot of stress toward the end of the year.”

Caldwell, headed in the fall to the University of Iowa, was one of about 538 Chargers to feel the stresses of high school lift off their shoulders Saturday at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates. The roughly two-and-a-half-hour graduation ceremony was one of the first in the area.

[ PHOTOS: 2015 Dundee-Crown High School graduation ]

And as a speech Caldwell gave during the ceremony pointed out, he and his fellow graduates weren't the only ones saying goodbye. After 20 years at the school, the last nine of which were served as principal, Lynn McCarthy took the stage to honor the graduating class, her last one before retiring.

“You have all earned your diplomas by hard work and perseverance,” McCarthy told the class of 2015. “We will miss your smiles ... we will miss the natural way that you interacted to make sure all students felt included in the Dundee-Crown community.”

The vast diversity of the class, and of the school, is what she’s loved so much, she said after the ceremony. She loved even more the way the students embraced that idea and each other over the last four years, McCarthy added.

For valedictorian Zain Ali, thinking back to all the work the class put in and the achievements that resulted is what left him almost speechless.

“To sit here, realizing what we have accomplished, and just to look back and be satisfied with our efforts,” Ali said before the ceremony began. “I could not ask more from the Class of 2015.”

Ali said his next step will be toward Johns Hopkins to study biomedical engineering, a profession he hopes will help him “leave some sort of mark on the world.”

More triumphs of the class at large were highlighted by McCarthy, from the support given to fellow students during sporting events to the various academic barriers hurdled.

The class included 10 students who scored 30 or higher on their ACTs; 20 AP scholars; 39 Illinois State Scholars; 300-plus who achieved honorable mention, honor roll or super honor roll throughout the year; and 15 who have enlisted in the military. The class also has collectively been rewarded $5.2 million in scholarships so far, she added.

“Whatever your talents, and you have many talents, Class of 2015, push yourselves to do your best,” McCarthy said. “Keep pushing our Charger pride, and I look forward to seeing the footprints you will leave around the world.

“I will miss you. I will miss our entire Dundee-Crown family.”