Burket Educational Center had a ceremony on Thursday, May 18, in its historic gym. Graduates who attended posed for a photo afterward with Burket staff. From left: Front — Burket teacher Micah Lukens; graduates Gracie Oaks, Jaden Hale and Logan Bowyer; and Tippecanoe Valley High School Principal Dayna Kolanowski, who helps oversee operations for Burket; back — Burket Classroom Paraprofessional Nicki Lewis and graduates Terrill Grewe, Christopher Cook Jr. and Christopher Bake II. Not pictured are graduates Bryonna Barrus, Noah England, Issac Gonzales, Abbie Graciliano, Hunter Meeks, Sherlyn Ortiz and Shaylin Wilcox.

Text and Photos
By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews

BURKET — Burket Educational Center has marked its 20th graduating class.

Fifteen students were honored during Tippecanoe Valley School Corp.’s alternative high school’s commencement ceremony at the school’s historic gym on Thursday, May 18. Eight of them were present.

That means more than 415 students have graduated from Burket since it opened in fall 2003.

Tippecanoe Valley High School Assistant Principal Dayna Kolanowski, who helps oversee Burket, briefly spoke at the ceremony.

“I want you to know I’m very proud of each and every one of you,” she said in her remarks. “The journey has finally come to an end.”

Burket teacher Micah Lukens also spoke, giving statistics on what the class of 2023 has accomplished.

“Of those graduates, one earned an academic honors diploma. Thirteen have earned Core 40 diplomas,” he said. “The group has collectively combined to complete 268 courses of study, mastered 1,613 units, 10,375 assessments and spent 396,841 minutes on their coursework, which is 100,000 more minutes than last year’s class.”

“This group is truly one that holds a lot of promise for the future, and the future’s now because many of them have already begun their path towards that,” he said.

Each graduate was then recognized on stage, with Lukens sharing a bit about their journeys to and at Burket and their future plans. The latter includes college, employment and the military.

Lukens told InkFreeNews following the ceremony that this year’s class had “a lot of hard workers, some big personalities and some that were here multiple years, which it’s really rewarding to see them finish.”

“I’m going to miss them,” he said.

Lukens speaks during the ceremony.

Kolanowski talks.