The week of Jan. 21 is a very exciting one for the juniors with two ceremonies designed to welcome them to the second half of their high school years. To kick-start the week, IB juniors had their IB Pinning Ceremony on Jan. 23, and the entire class of 2020 had their Ring Ceremony the following day. Both events are a milestone in the lives of the students at Coral Gables Senior High and are representative of their accomplishments thus far.

On Wednesday, the International Baccalaureate (IB) class of 2020 was inaugurated into the program at the IB Pinning Ceremony. It is a Cavalier tradition which serves to recognize the hard work the students put into their academic success. The evening started off with a performance by the jazz band followed by JROTC’s presentation of colors and the national anthem sung by Divisi.

A cultural component was integrated into the ceremony, with IB students welcoming the guests in different languages. A few of them were Cantonese, Russian, Farsi, Portuguese, Romanian and Danish.

The inspirational IB senior speaker was Thomas Harley, who incorporated quotes into his speech as well as a personal experience related to the extended essay, which was intended to motivate the class of 2020. The keynote speaker was Luis Lauredo, who delivered a speech of empowerment to the junior class.

After the speeches had been delivered, the juniors were called to the stage where they received a white rose and were pinned by one of the IB seniors. After getting pinned, they sang the Alma Mater to close and took a class picture on stage.

“It was very fun, and I am proud of how far I have managed to come in the International Baccalaureate program,” junior Ty Almeida said.

On Thursday, Jan. 24, the class of 2020 had their Junior Ring Ceremony to officially welcome them as upperclassmen. The ceremony commenced with the juniors walking into the auditorium, and the presentation of the Processional by the class sponsor, Ms. Leanne Monzon, followed shortly after. JROTC Color Guard did their Presentation of Colors followed by Divisi singing the national anthem.

The junior class president, Julianna Goldfarb, gave her welcoming speech to the juniors. Then the other class officers spoke about the history of the ring, how to wear it and the traditions associated with the rings.

The class officers were the first to receive their rings and afterward presented the rings to the rest of the class. One by one, the class of 2020 received their junior rings.

CGHS Principal, Mr. Costa, did the Dedication of the Rings and led the countdown for the juniors to put their rings on at the same time. To close off the ceremony, the junior class sang the Alma Mater.

“I loved receiving my ring and seeing how far I have come since Freshman year alongside my friends. It feels like a true accomplishment,” junior Kristen Sosa said.

The class of 2020 has come so far in their high school journey – IB juniors are now on their way to receiving their program diploma, and the entire class is just one short year away from graduation. Coral Gables Senior High is proud of the juniors and cannot wait to see what is in store for them.