Eighty-four Hawks flip tassels Sunday

DONNELLSON – Central Lee spent about an hour Sunday conferring degrees on 84 seniors.
Central Lee Principal Nicole Herdrich pushed emotion down multiple times in congratulating the 2025 graduating class, which includes her son, Bo.
Herdrich commended the parents at the outset of her comments telling them the job is not easy, but the most important one they will ever have.
“Thank you for the love, support, and guidance you have given unconditionally to your children over the past 18 years,” she said.
She thanked the faculty and staff of the district saying their time and talents are immeasurable when it comes to district's annual graduating classes.
“There is no other team of professionals that I would choose to work beside each day or whom I would have teach my own children. You are an amazing group of people. I believe in the work that you do, and I value you so much.”
She also thanked the community for the care – morally, financially, and in time they show, in support of the school district.
Then she directed her message to the students and told them one of the most important things they can do moving forward is staying connected to people. Not just with a swipe or tap, but being there in the present and sharing their lives and stories.
“It’s a real powerful, emotional thing to stand up here and look out at you graduates in your caps and gowns. Eyes full of possibilities, hearts full of emotion. This moment, this ceremony is more than a celebration. It’s a threshold. You’re stepping out of a chapter that you’ve known for years into one that’s yet to be written.”
She said she wanted to offer them something that didn’t come from TikTok, or an app, or a reel, or a headline. Something simpler… connection. Herdrich said she read a book over the past year written by a former U.S. Surgeon General, who said loneliness is as dangerous to the heart as smoking 16 cigarettes a day.

“It’s not just a medical issue, it’s a human one,” she said. “And your generation has recorded the highest level of loneliness.”
The student body’s 2025 Class President Sydney Gram, who is going into business at the University of Arkansas, gave the opening student remarks.
Gram thanked her best friends during her time at Central Lee for having shoulders to cry on and someone to celebrate with.
She said balancing school with friends, jobs, and extracurriculars proved difficult, but the foundation was needed to succeed in adult life. Gram said being there for each other is one of the things Central Lee’s student body is the greatest at.
“The life we live now will be completely different for us in the years to come,” she said. “We must let go of our fears and strive to be completely different.
Valedictorian Andrew Underwood thanked the Central Lee faculty for not only teaching the seniors, but for helping guide them through everyday struggles that teens face growing up.
“Even though we don’t always show it, we are extremely grateful for everything you have done for us,” he said.
He also thanked the families of the district for creating the foundations for success.
Underwood said four years ago he started the journey with his classmates and, over time, they have become family.
“As we leave Central Lee and go our separate ways, I hope you don’t forget what it's like to be a part of this group,” he said. “We'll always be the Class of 2025. Now looking ahead, this is where our real journey begins.”