Columbia High School held its 139th commencement exercises last week at Richard J. Codey Arena in West Orange.
The ceremony began with the Columbia High School band playing “Music for the Royal Fireworks” by George Frideric Handel as the procession of faculty and staff made their way to the stage.
The band switched to “Pomp and Circumstance” as the soon to be graduates entered the arena and made their way to their seats in the converted hockey rink.
The CHS Graduation Choir sang “The Star Spangled Banner” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing” to begin the program before Student Council President Naomi Abrams greeted the students, faculty and audience of family and friends.
Class of 2026 President Emma Brochin addressed her classmates as a group for the final time before Superintendent of Schools Jason Bing spoke, offering his greetings to the students as did Board of Education President William Meyer.
Principal Frank Sanchez officially “presented” the class for graduation, which Bing accepted before members of the Board of Education and school administrators began handing out the diplomas.
Tassels on mortarboards were officially repositioned to signify the students were graduates before the Class of 2026 marched out while the CHS Band played recessional music.
A Midnight Madness Bus Parade celebrating the new graduates followed. The buses passed through South Orange and Maplewood, where in many cases people lined the streets cheering, before the graduates were taken to a private party that lasted well into the night.
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