The students of the Arts and Humanities Academy (AHA) Small Learning Community (SLC) came together on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 to celebrate their graduation. Despite the relatively few graduates — around 60 AHA seniors compared to the 800-plus overall senior class — the Freight venue was filled to the brim with supporting students, family, and friends.
The ceremony started with an introduction by senior core instructor and English teacher John Becker, who spoke on the pride and care he had for this year’s graduating class.
After the introduction, all graduating students from AHA came on stage and gave a short speech. Audience members laughed and cried as the wisdom and memories gained over the last four years were shared. “I will carry these memories for the rest of my life,” Jack Francis, Berkeley High School senior and AHA student, said. Students spoke of the sadness of moving on and how much they will miss their core group of friends, but also the excitement for college and what comes next.
Being one of the smaller SLCs at BHS, AHA students had the opportunity to closely bond with teachers and classmates they had for three years. “I came into AHA with only one friend and I am leaving AHA with a group of people I can call a family,” graduating BHS senior Noah Pearson said.
After many warming speeches, Vera Lynn’s “We’ll Meet Again” song was performed by senior Jamie Grace. The song reflected on the bittersweet moment with an optimistic and comforting tune. As the performance ended and celebrating cheers died out, student speaker Latrell White took to the podium and delivered a powerful speech about AHA’s uniqueness. “Being different is the biggest strength anyone can have,” White said.
As the graduation ceremony ended, this year’s AHA scholarship award was given to seniors Vivienne Almodova and Jayceon Atkins. The award highlights students who were pillars of the community and represent the core values of an AHA scholar. After the final words, students and audience members were met with dinner and cake in the venue.