The eagerness of an occasionally unruly audience proved unintentionally apropos for the Freedom HS graduation theme espoused at Stabler Arena June 4.

"'We Won't Be' Victims of the System" was a rallying cry not for fighting the powers that be, but for breaking the constraints of stereotyping and expectations imposed on modern youth.

Admitting his own curiosity about the chosen theme, BASD Board President Mike Faccinetto said after some consideration he'd come to accept its more subtle meanings. "Society unfortunately likes to brand you. Your future American is labeled lazy, uncaring and entitled … they say the old days are gone and you won't be prepared for a global economy. I believe that nothing could be farther from the truth. You should be proud to stand up and say no, you won't be victims of the system.

"After all," Faccinetto said, "victims who accept the status quo and do nothing about it clearly have never set foot in Freedom HS." He quoted nighttime TV host David Letterman's famous post-911 commentary; "There's only one requirement for anybody, and that's to be courageous."

Taking the courageous route was class speaker Helen Hsu, who began her speech with self-criticism. A stereotypical overachieving Asian student, she wondered how her accumulated titles and awards, exactly what many would expect of her, could in fact prove she's not a product of the system she eschews.

"I tried my best to be a good student. I did my best to be a good athlete. I wanted to achieve because I wanted friends. But I didn't realize my friends were my friends because of what kind of person I am. Not what accomplishment I made.

"We've been taught it's necessary to win," Hsu said; that getting into the best group, the best college and the best job are the greatest goals. But she insisted being influenced by those around us and influencing them in turn offers greater personal rewards. "I recently asked people why they value their friends. The answers ranged from 'I can always count on her,' to 'He keeps me out of trouble.' None of them said it was because their friend was a cheerleading captain or on the football team. We impact the world not through our titles or position, but how we influence others on a personal level.

"It's how we inspire our friends to dream big and never give up. It's how we lead by example … doing what we love with passion and purpose."

Nicholas Youwakim, chosen to speak by the faculty – though he assured them they'd regret it – relayed his theory of systemic perpetuity in an analogy of a school year as seasons. The wasted laxness of Summer, opportunities lost to restrictions of Fall, hardships of Winter and poignant but overlooked details of Spring.

It was an introspective essay, but an earlier shot at administrators for the drudgery of the curriculum took its toll. "Nick," began Superintendent Dr. Joseph Roy, "If you're going to bust on the head of the system, do it after you've received your diploma."

Roy did not discuss "the system" any farther, but focused on community, telling the staff, faculty and students he was proud of them, specifically telling the seniors, "You've made your school a better place." And in that, they should remember their Freedom family. Of their teachers, friends and loved ones who have mutually supported each other.

Roy said even an ordinary act on an ordinary day can show us we can and should count on others. He related a recent event from his own life, a phone call from a sobbing daughter living in New York. She'd just purchased a $300 window-mounted air conditioner for her apartment and made the mistake of trying to install it. "This is the point she should have asked for help," he said as the audience laughed. "But guess what happened? Three hundred dollars literally out the window. I received a hysterical phone call. I thought it was a boyfriend thing – turned out to be an air conditioner thing.

"The point is: Yes. We all need help for different ways at different times. Sometimes a small obstacle can be surmounted before it becomes a large obstacle if we just ask for help."