Bermuda celebrated 133 new high school graduates with a wave of applause at an emotional ceremony yesterday for The Berkeley Institute’s Class of 2023.

Keisha Douglas, principal, gave a “brief synopsis” of the cohort’s experiences to the gathering at the National Sports Centre in Devonshire.

“They began as eager students in September 2019 and by March 2020 — we all know what happened in Bermuda and around the world — which turned the class of 2023’s educational journey upside down.”

The senior school students went into lockdown and spent 2½ years off campus. Under “hybrid schooling”, they sometimes spent just two days a week at the Berkeley campus.

Praising their “sheer resilience and perseverance”, Ms Douglas told them: “Graduates, you did it.”

Their graduation coincides with the school’s celebration of 125 years as an academic institution, after its founding on September 6, 1897.

She commended “the 133 students who have proven that when you keep the end in view, you can achieve anything”.

Ms Douglas added that 79 of the graduates had been accepted into top colleges and universities, with 44 headed to the US, 21 to the UK, 12 to Canada and 38 moving on to the Bermuda College. Ten are joining the workforce.

Five have completed the nursing assistant certificate, while 25 took scholarships at the school’s awards ceremony last Saturday, totalling $115,000 to offset university fees.

Additional academic support from corporate sponsors and other partners added up to nearly $1.7 million.

Ms Douglas told them: “We will miss you, but we are extremely pleased to see you leave your Berkeley days behind you.

“We know you will come back again. We know you will all make your mark on the local and global community.”

She closed with The Berkeley Institute motto: “Respice finem — keep the end in view.”

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