The Class of 2024 kicked off this year’s Senior Speeches with impressive oration in the Berry Performing Arts Center. Gbemi Olarewaju ’24, Student Council President, began this year’s series with a spectacular speech on Oct. 3, followed by classmates Siddharth Bharadwaj ’24 and Kayla Martel ’24 on Oct. 5, and Fay Zhu ’24 and Luke Tan ’24 on Oct. 10.
Gbemi (pictured) explored the topic of identity and the question, “Who am I inside?” She encouraged her peers to focus on character, personality, morals, values and goals and concluded with “you are the best and only you.”
Siddharth shared humorous childhood stories to illustrate the importance of communication, curiosity and challenging the norms. He’s embraced a wider range of experiences provided by the positive environment at LA.
Kayla discussed the many ways in which she has changed since her 10-year-old self in an emotional speech. While Kayla acknowledged she has changed socially and mentally, she remains proud of herself and she thanked the many people who have helped during her journey.
Fay spoke about her struggles with overthinking everything and shared strategies for ways to combat this problem. She encouraged her peers to complete tasks as soon as possible and prioritize a plan to achieve goals.
Luke addressed the importance of getting to know people and how new friends have helped him learn more about himself. All friends were at one time a stranger, and the unique qualities of different individuals will expand horizons if you get to know them.