Graduation of the Class of 2011 was held on May 20
Friday, May 20, 2011, was the day that ACS seniors were given their diplomas while surrounded by friends and family.
The ceremony started with the sounds of the “Hymn of Saints Cyril and Methodius” and the procession of members of the ACS Administration, members of the Board of Trustees, Faculty, Special Guests, and finally, the graduating seniors. Next we heard the National Anthem of the Republic of Bulgaria, the National Anthem of the United States of America, and the ACS Hymn from the ACS Choir.
Dr. Paul K. Johnson, President of ACS, gave the welcome address, followed by greetings from Mr. William J. Williams, Jr., Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and remarks from Ms. Susan M. Sutton, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of the United States of America in Bulgaria. The keynote address was given by Mr. Levon Hampartzoumian, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Management Board of UniCredit Bulbank.
Dr. Johnson and Mrs. Maria Angelova, Deputy Director of ACS, then presented the special awards:
The Irwin T. Sanders Award for Service – Kristiyana Kalcheva
The Margaret R. Sanders Award for Student Life – Aysel Kucuksu
The Floyd Black Award – Iglika Atanassova and Alexander Gough
The Valedictorian Award – Albena Ilieva
Mr. George Todorov, President of ACS PTA, presented the award Teacher of the Year. This year, the choice of the Class of 2011 was Ms. Maria Veleva, Spanish Language Teacher.
The final speech of the afternoon was from Albena Ilieva, valedictorian of the ACS Class of 2011. Diplomas were presented to each graduating senior by Dr. Johnson, Mrs. Angelova, and Mr. Williams. Dr. Johnson then announced that the seniors had met the requirements for the American Diplomas and allowed the graduates to move their tassles from right to left, a visible representation of their status as ACS graduates.
After the ceremony, graduates, friends, family, administration, board members, alumni, and faculty gathered on the lawn next to the Science building for hugs and photographs. A reception was also held at Black House for continued celebration.
