(June 13, 2008) Dear Class of 2008, When I joined the Clark staff, you were also new freshmen. I have gone through four years with you. You have made me very proud. Your class has left many legacies, but I will remember these things about you: Angie Wang’s work on the 07 robot. We beat CV and went to nationals. Gayane Vardoyan’s computer skills, she can fix anything and she does it with such humility and grace. Jaime Saavedra deciding to become a school counselor. Marco Osuna working down at Lincoln Elementary, watching him become a teacher. Taking Serli Nazaryan to the Daughters of American Revolution Banquet and how she demonstrated that class transcends all ethnic backgrounds. Dalar Nazari presenting her research to the county rescue workers, firemen and sheriffs. How poised she was when her projector failed, and how she continued her presentation without missing a beat. Ruben Rojas making it to graduation. Jeff Salvador choosing to become a teacher. You better get to school on time when you teach second grade, Jeff. Jess Reza choosing to take a risk and go far away to college. Andrea Peralta’s San Francisco smile. Some people just evoke one word: Gustavo Endara = gutsy. Susan Bryant= efficient. Adriana Valencia= personality. Julia Song= leadership. Others have a story: Kaz Mizuguchi donating his hair to a cancer kid. Harris Ono enjoying his single life. Cristina Olivares balancing softball and Clark while driving in every morning from Palmdale. Some are associated with a career: Reiko Ortega, the writer. Vahe Khachikian, the comedian. Scott Widholm, the engineer. David Mangikian, the photographer. I will miss the class of 2008. You are the best ever! Your counselor, Ms. Carlson Dear Class of 2008, This is a hard letter to write. I’m saying good bye to you as your teacher and as your advisor for the last four years. I hope many of you know I am also saying good bye as your friend. I am so proud of the class as a whole–you are an amazing group. I can never forget your enthusiasm for our fund raisers, and your willingness to be a part of the activities here at Clark. You are definitely a party group! But also, seeing the senior projects this year has humbled me. So many of you have come so far–far beyond what was expected of you–or of any senior for that matter. You are truly a unique group, destined for great things. Finally, though, let me just say you will also, for me, always be the Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde group. You have a way of going from one extreme to the other in a matter of seconds. I think this is probably a good thing in the long run, even if it made me crazy some days. So, although I glared at you to be quiet, or got upset with the way things were going, know that I was and am so impressed with you for your accomplishments, for your willingness to speak up when something needs to be said, for your resilience and your capacity for joy. You will make the world a better place. Thank you for that gift! With love, Ms. Pettegrew Dear Class of 2008, On the day before winter break in 2006, two of your classmates – George Balayan and Syune Gevorgyan – did something rather unexpected in the Humanities class I co-teach with Mrs. Davis: they brought cupcakes for the entire class of 65 students. And they also presented Mrs. Davis and me with a large thank-you card. I share this story here because this simple gesture of gratitude and generosity is one which I think we can all learn from – freshman and senior alike, young and old. George and Syune’s act of kindness shows that our world is made better by doing things not because we have to do them or because we are asked to do so, but rather because we want to give of ourselves to others. As you all graduate high school, you will find that you will need to do more for yourself and that others will expect more of you. Your parents and your teachers may give you more freedom and ultimately more responsibility. And with this freedom you can choose to focus on how to only improve yourself – financially, educationally, socially. Or you can also find ways – such as Syune and George did – to also think about how to better the lives of others. I hope all of you will continue to build your own lives, but also remember to continue to support and better the lives of others as well. Congratulations and best wishes! – Mr. Davis You have had a great opportunity these past 4 years. The best year for most of you was your sophomore year if you were fortunate enough to have me for your PE teacher (just kidding!). I hope you remember how much fun you had in PE and continue to choose to be active throughout your life. Your generation has a keen focus on a healthy lifestyle so take advantage of the individual and social aspects fitness has to offer to you when you leave Clark. Resist those temptations that are just plain wrong. One of my most favorite TAs in the whole world was a nice boy, great kid, but gave into that temptation of driving too fast and I will never see him again. Don’t let this be you. Keep in mind when something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t! All you’re really missing are the terrible consequences of an incorrect choice. Good choices usually include others and don’t just focus on you. Remember when you have a chance to be kind or do something nice, take it! I have loved watching you grow throughout your high school years. Now you will have to be self-disciplined if you want to be successful. You won’t have Ramona picking up after you, or the honest students at Clark returning your cell phone, backpack or personal items you left out. In the real world, these things are stolen and lost forever. Be proud of the accomplishment of graduation from high school and take control of your life now. Your potential is unlimited. Whether you go to college or begin a career immediately after graduation, remember that a day without laughter is a day lost. If it’s not fun, make it fun. You are in control now, make it work, and when you do, come back and tell me about it! I love you all (okay, most of you), Miss Thomsen Dear Seniors Who Were Once Davis Humanities Students, How I will miss seeing many of you in the halls! Even though you left my classroom happily clutching your “I Survived the Davises” pen two years ago, I still have many memories of our days together. I know those days were hard ones for some of you, and perhaps in time, you won’t remember the long nights or frantic deadlines, but you’ll remember the interview you maybe had with your grandmother for your oral history, or the way the elementary school children’s eyes lit up as you read your story, or the way Mr. Davis created his uncanny incarnation of Mohandas Gandhi as he modeled how you were to do your final presentations for our class. I offer you this literary advice: Strive to be like Mark in Kaffir Boy, pursuing your dreams and never taking your freedom for granted; don’t let fear and insecurity guide your decisions as they do Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart; don’t be like Benjamin in Animal Farm – if you see an injustice, try to right it rather than simply ignore it; and remember to dance with the daffodils as in Wordsworth’s poem “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.” Now, a few specific memories – • Gently waking Gustavo Endara as he sat completely asleep through my fascinating lectures on the French Revolution • Richard Alvarenga serving detention for chewing gum like a bazillion times! • Waiting angrily on the bus while some of you continued to eat your meal at Johnny Rockets (which we told you not to go to!) on our Museum of Tolerance field trip and then worrying some of you were going to “hurl” because you had a hot sauce battle with sauces bought at that Farmers’ Market hot sauce store • Seeing John Dahno’s face as he saw a good grade on his history essay • Appreciating Zepyor Toomanian’s lovely smile and positive attitude every day • Laughing as Evan Baygan told me how students in Block 2 would ask him what we had done in Block 1 and he would tell them that Mr. Davis took out his guitar and sang a few songs (!) • Feeling all warm and fuzzy when Alida Artinian told Mr. Davis and me “thank you” for organizing the field trip to the Museum of Tolerance • Going crazy the first few weeks of school because Alan Janoyan looked so familiar and then realizing I had taught his sister fifteen years (!) before at Wilson • Admiring Flora Kyzykyan for coming in at enrichment always wanting to know how to do better • Watching Maro Mkrtchyan planning her birthday party when she was supposed to be taking notes on World War I • Looking at Serli Nazarian’s essays again and again and again • Wondering if Kazu Mizugushi would wear his hair down or pulled back that day • Appreciating Angela Azevedo’s gift of a box of transparencies (those transparencies lasted me all through last year) • Being “wowed” by Ryan Hancock’s wonderful photos of his trip to the Getty Museum • Knowing that wherever I sat Marty Fong in the class, he would be a wonderful group member to his table group I’ve so enjoyed seeing all of you in the halls as you’ve matured into the Seniors you are today, the Graduates you will be soon. Serli Nazarian and Michael De Guzman, thanks for being our T.A.s this year; you willingly ventured back into the realm of the Davii. Josh Kirkwood, thank you for your excellent camera skills as you videotaped us many times this year; maybe you didn’t always get credit on your current events back in sophomore year, but you know how to handle a camera and guitar with skill. Yelina Karapetyan and Ani Karapetyan, what great big sisters you both are that you would periodically come by checking on how your “little bros” were doing in this year in Humanities. To all of you, I wish you a wonderful future. May you live lives of purpose, humor, and love. Mrs. Davis Dear Batch 2008, Congratulations! I know, this may be the most overused word at this point in time. Take note, you will soon be on much rougher road, which are just trials to prepare you for even more meaningful achievements. I am very confident that with all the knowledge and inspiration you learned from your teachers and the rest of the Clark staff, you will be able to realize your dreams aspirations. You truly deserve my utmost admiration. If I may add, a few of you have been the subject of my suspicion. I had fun playing along with all those excuses – stomach aches/cramps, headache, feelings, nauseous and all the other “aches” you can think of – all done “a la Clark fashion”. My prayers and blessings to you Batch 2008! Sincerely, Grace Juarez CMHS – Health Office I recently heard a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist speak to a group of aspiring young journalists and suggest that they their pay attention to things happening around them. His point was that you never know when something you experience will be of significance or interest to others. I thought it was good advice for those who sought a career as a journalist, but I would take the suggestion one step further and apply it to a much larger group. Submitted for your consideration is that no life experience is wasted and yet it may take you years to realize where the experience fits in to the puzzle of your life. As I speak with former Clark students, I am struck with the commonality of their experiences after Clark. They soon come to realize how many skills they have mastered here and how many of their peers from other high schools come to their futures less prepared. Things that seemed insignificant or dismissed at the time students were learning them here, become of major significance in the “real world.” After graduating from a prestigious university, my niece had to take costly technology training needed for her “corporate job.” This expensive technology training was basically 9th grade work at Clark. I wonder how much easier her university experience would have been had she mastered these skills before graduating from high school? If it is true that no experience is wasted, you will be applying your Clark skills for a very long lime to come. When you experience an application or a connection of these skills, think of the people at Clark Magnet who worked so hard to give you an advantage for the rest of your life. And don’t forget to measure twice… Doug Dall