Written by: Tom Markland and published in The Martinsburg Journal on May 27, 2025, link to the article HERE.
MARTINSBURG – Despite the pouring rain, 389 students took their first steps into the future during Martinsburg High School’s Class of 2025 commencement ceremony on Tuesday evening.
This year’s graduating class included students attending over 40 colleges across the country, as well as five students going into the military. They’ve been awarded dozens of scholarships, totaling around $4.1 million.
Many of the school’s athletic teams have seen success with the class, as well, including the football team, which won a state championship in December, the Bulldogs’ 11th state title since 2010.
When it comes to the arts, Martinsburg’s wide variety of bands and organizations have won dozens of awards and played at events and venues from the Apple Blossom Festival to Disney World. This year’s marching band was the largest it’s been in two decades.
For Principal Trent Sherman, this year’s graduating class was his last, with him moving on to a new position at James Rumsey Technical Institute. He said in his 20 years at the school, the thing he’s most proud of is the school’s solidarity, paired with its diversity.
“The thing I’m proud of from Martinsburg High School is the way you guys come together. You come from different backgrounds, different religions, different races and you all come together in teams and clubs, and you work together, and you’re successful,” Sherman said.
Both Senior Class President Kailey Ruiz and Student Council President Savannah Malatt reflected on the Class of 2025’s experience going through school — experiencing the coronavirus pandemic in middle school and starting high school as “little fish in a big pond.”
“If you had told us four years ago that we’d be standing here now, dressed in caps and gowns, feeling a little nervous but mostly proud, we might have laughed or rolled our eyes or even asked how much longer until the class was over,” Ruiz said. “But here we are.”
For each graduating class, presenting the school with a class gift has been a tradition for Martinsburg High for years now. This year’s class gift was raising $500 toward a fitness trail named for the school’s late guidance counselor, Les Smith.
The project’s goal is to have a gravel trail that travels down the front of the school, goes along the fence, turns back toward Queen Street and wraps back to the school. The Class of 2025 treasurer and the football team’s quarterback, Koi Fagan, presented the gift to Sherman.
In spite of the rainy weather, Sherman advised members of the Class of 2025 to utilize their mastery of technology and learn from the mistakes they make in life, rather than running from them.
“There are going to be storms,” Sherman said. “You’ve got two choices: You can run from them or you can stand and face them. I promise you, you will emerge a better version of yourself if you face them and learn from them.”