The Shelter Island Class of 2026 looks back:18 graduate on June 18
It was a joyous occasion for Shelter Island’s 18 graduates and their families and friends the evening of June 18, celebrating a class that demonstrated excellence in the classroom, in a range of sports, and given hundreds of hours volunteering to benefit their community.
From the first notes of “Pomp and Circumstance” that brought tears to the eyes of many, to the ritual tossing of the caps in the air outside the school after their graduation, the students were embraced by family members and friends and teachers and staff as they prepare for their next steps in life.
Welcoming this extraordinary class, Superintendent Brian Doelger, Ed.D., noted the graduation had a unique convergence of the U.S. Open in Southampton, the Shelter Island 10K and the Strawberry Festival in Southold Town. “But to me, there is no important night and no people more important than the students sitting here,” Mr. Doelger said.
This is a class that was in the 6th grade when their superintendent assumed his role. He recalled the kindness they have shown one another — genuinely cheering for each others. “You are all special people,” the superintendent said.
Noting that their graduation marks the nation’s 250th birthday, Mr. Doelger said that for two and a half centuries, Americans have celebrated the courage of those who dared to imagine something new. They were not perfect people, and they certainly did not have all the answers, Mr. Doelger said. “But they believed in a powerful idea: that each generation has both the opportunity and the responsibility to build a better future … Isn’t that the true story of our great country — that we believe that our next generation will take what we have done and make our country better? That responsibility now belongs to you. And passing that on to you, the students before me, makes me hopeful.”
History is not made just by famous people but by parents who sacrifice for their children, teachers who inspire their curiosity, neighbors who set an example by helping one another and citizens who participate in their community, the superintendent said, adding that the future “will depend on whether people choose respect over division, service over self-interest and hope over cynicism. I encourage you to remember that the most important question is not what our country has been. The most important question is what it can become. And the answer to that question rests with each new generation. Class of 2026, you are that generation.”
Valedictorian Ell Schack offered his classmates advice, challenging them to overcome fears they may face about the unknown future. “A minute ago, you were ready to embrace the unknown depths, but now, while at the water’s edge, it’s scarier,” he said. “One of the most impactful things I’ve learned during my time at Shelter Island is the importance of pushing yourself into those scary new beginnings. Although here at Shelter Island, we have teachers and a community at the shore cheering us on and giving us opportunities to seek the unknown, as we graduate, it will be solely up to us to break through the waves.”
Quoting singer songwriter Beabadoobee, the 2026 Valedictorian advised, “Don’t wait for the tide just to dip both your feet in. I encourage each and every one of you to dive for new opportunities, chances of a lifetime and passing possibilities. I hope that you all recognize that the cold is not a sign of danger but simply a readjustment.”
The route to discovery can be found by taking a class with which you’re not familiar, a sport you haven’t played, joining the “weirdest club” in your next school, he said. “Maybe you’ll find something out about yourself you never knew.”
He expressed thanks to those have cheered on the graduates, demonstrating patience and positivity when it was needed most. He singled out Alyssa Prior, guidance counselor and class advisor, as a number one advocate and “the sweetest person I’ve met.”
To his family, he expressed thanks for their unconditional love and support. Of his fellow graduates, he said he has seen them dream and aspire to greatness and some have already begun to push boundaries on the road to making their dreams a reality. As the class moves ahead in different directions, he expressed confidence that all would be there if needed by any of them.
Salutatorian Madison Sobejana took her listeners on a journey, recalling her first day of school, waving at her parents “while pretending not to be scared. … While we’re living through moments, we rarely realize they’re becoming memories. We don’t realize that one day we’ll miss the things we once rushed through.”
Her words, no doubt, evoked memories for many of their paths through their schooling.
Fifth grade “made us feel unstoppable,” she said. “We thought we had everything figured out. By 8th grade “life started asking more of us.” Middle school wasn’t easy but it was where “we started discovering who we were and sometimes who we weren’t,” she said.
“Friendships changed; dreams changed; we changed … High school gave us memories we’ll carry forever and somewhere between freshman year and today, we grew up — not all at once, not perfectly, but little by little. We are resilient.”
The2026 Salutatorian thanked teachers for seeing the potential in each student and families for the sacrifices they made “every early morning, every late-night talk, every piece of advice, every ride home and every moment you believed in us when we doubted ourselves.”
The graduates entered their journey as children who barely knew each other but leave as people “connected by years of memories, inside jokes, victories and moments that only we will fully understand,” she said. “We will never forget how these years felt. Tonight is emotional because it’s the last time life will ever be exactly like this. For the first time, our paths are truly beginning to separate,” she said. “If kindergarten taught us how to begin, then graduation teaches us how to let go and how to step into the unknown.”
What she hopes she and her fellow graduates will always remember is there will always be new beginnings, new places, people challenges and dreams.
“Even when the future feels uncertain, we are capable of more than we know,” Ms. Sobejana said. “Let’s walk into the future the same way we once walked into kindergarten with nervousness, with hope and with the belief that something amazing is waiting for us on the other side.”
From Board of Education President Kathleen Lynch, the Class of 2026 heard something surprising: “You are not perfect and I’m so happy about it.”
She went on to explain that perfection is not the end all, be all. “I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what appears when you occasionally come up short. I hope you find yourselves embracing your failures because you were brave enough to try,” Ms. Lynch said. “You don’t need to know everything before you begin, … If things are challenging or disappointing or just downright bad — if it’s not what you had planned — ride the wave. I mean, you’re Islanders — we’re surrounded by water —ride the wave and see where it takes you. If it’s unplanned or if you can’t do anything to change it, act as if it’s exactly what you had in mind and see what gifts might follow … You’ve also got all the potential to be bold and brave and brilliant and passionate You are the blank page right now Don’t be perfect — be intentional. When you’re perfect, it’s harder to take the risk. It’s harder to veer out of your comfort zone because when you’re not perfect, it can get a little messy … Try as much as you can to have good intentions. The real wins lie in how we land on the people around us, how we made others feel. How do others feel after they’ve been in our presence? Who did we make laugh really hard? Who did we sit with when they cried?”
Quoting Pope Francis, Ms. Lynch added, “We are all born to help each other. No matter how difficult it is, Life is good when you are happy. But much better when others are happy because of you.”
The Reporter will bring you more photos of grads and the ceremony on this site and in our June 25 print edition.
