BY BRANDY TEMPLETON
Northview Academy celebrated the academic achievements of the 26 members of the Class of 2026 on Friday. Mac Gray Auditorium was full of students, teachers, parents, family members, and friends on Friday afternoon.
Teacher Stewart Kincaid, Iredell-Statesville Schools administrator Shayla Savage, and Principal Jon Weavil shared words of encouragement with the grads.
“This is a celebration of achievement and possibility,” said Kincaid, who teaches social studies. “You are capable of wonderful and great things.”
Savage, the chief student services officer for I-SS, gave a passionate appeal as she urged the graduates to keep striving.
“Northview Academy, come on, come on, let me hear you! Let ’em know! They counted you out, but you are still here. Let ’em know. You didn’t quit when times got hard. Let ’em know!“
Savage shared her personal journey of being the “little Black girl” from Pine Tops, North Carolina, telling the students that it doesn’t matter where or what circumstances they come from.
“Pine Tops is a town so small it sits on 1.03 square miles and the population could fit in the Mac Gray Auditorium. With two stop lights, if you blink twice, you will miss it,” she exclaimed.
In the predominantly Black town, Savage often heard statements that “nothing good comes from there,” but she didn’t let it stop her. In third grade, she knew she wanted to be the “big boss,” or the person who told the teachers what to do. But, all through school, she never saw a Black principal.
Savage graduated from NC A&T University and then from graduate school after earning full scholarships.
“I was the first person in my family to graduate college,” she shared. “I didn’t pay a dime.”
The feats didn’t come without challenges though. In her junior year of college, Savage faced an unexpected pregnancy. Asking herself questions, she realized she’d came too far to start over.
“We don’t always get a fresh start. Sometimes we gotta pack up and keep on moving,” she shared.
The proud mother of two said she relied on her faith in God to overcome those challenges.
“That’s how God works. When you take one step, He’ll take two,” she said. “You can decide to rise, grow, and God can make one step forward. Sometimes all you need is the one step.”
She closed dramatically.
“So when someone asks you what good can come from Northview, it’s you!” Savage said. “And regardless who doubted you and tried to count you out, you keep pushing, keep moving forward, and Let ’em know, ‘On my Momma, On my Hood, I’m the good that came from Northview!’”
Principal Weavil told the students, their friends and families, that it had been a privilege to watch the Class of 2026 grow over the past four years.
“Remember that success is not just about awards,” Weavil shared. “True success is measured by your character. What matters most is to keep moving and growing.”
He also challenged his students.
“Stay curious, humble, and determined. Never forget where you came from and never underestimate the impact you can have on others.”
Photos
