BY ELAINE VAN DEVELDE
Staff Writer
EDISON — As the Edison High School graduates of the class of 2005 prepare for their futures, their principal says he would be happy to keep this class around for another year.
The class graduation on June 16 was an event filled with both celebration of new beginnings and sad farewells for their proud principal.
“I’d keep them for another year if I could,” said high school Principal Joseph Kovacs. “I’ve had some of these kids with me for 12 years, since I was a principal at the Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. I just hate to see them leave. They’re hardworking, diligent and community-minded — just nice kids.”
The graduating class was comprised of 430 students, 93 percent of whom will move on to two or four-year colleges, Kovacs said.
The valedictorian was Annol Gupta, who is attending Princeton University in the fall as a pre-medical student.
“She was just an outstanding student and well-rounded person,” Kovacs said. “She maintained nothing less than an A average her entire high school career, had a solid streak of continuity on the girls tennis team, and she was always ready to volunteer for a good cause as well as being a valuable member of the student council.”
In addition to his memories of many in the class dating back to elementary school, Kovacs said he will also treasure the fond memories he has of the class of 2005 rallying for any good cause.
“We had a volleyball for charity activity, called Buddy Ball, to raise funds for special needs students in athletic events,” he said. “These kids put forth such a fabulous effort, and the event was a tremendous success. They are very caring and always went out of their way to do nice things for people. The money they raised for these good causes was the most that had been raised for a long time.”
The Buddy Ball event was part of the high school’s A Week of Giving campaign, which is organized annually by the student council. The council won recognition from the state Association of Student Councils this year as one of the best in the state.
“Some of the kids joked that I would probably follow them all the way to college,” Kovacs said. “If I could, I just might. I wish them all the very best.”