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BETHLEHEM, PA —-On Tuesday, June 15, 2021, the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts (Charter Arts) held its 2021 Commencement Ceremony under the PNC Tent at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem. The school held two ceremonies this year- the 10 AM Ceremony celebrated graduates from Instrumental Music, Production Arts, Theater, and Vocal Music and the 2 PM Ceremony celebrated graduates from Dance, Literary Arts, and Visual Arts.
The Charter Arts Class of 2021, which includes 137 graduates, collectively earned more than $5 million in scholarship and grant aid for post-secondary education.
Unlike other schools that may choose a valedictorian to speak at graduation, Charter Arts chooses two graduation speakers each year through an application process. The two graduation speakers this year were Hailey Belverio and Hanna Mae Lambert. Additional speakers included members of the school’s administration, including Dr. Carise Comstock, Superintendent & CEO; MaryJo Rosania-Harvie, Chief of Artistic Programs & Events/Co-Principal; and Lauren Sheldon, Chief of Core Curriculum & Engagement/Co-Principal.
During the ceremonies, the school’s Artistic Directors announced a variety of senior awards, which included an Overall Senior Award for each department, which went to: Jordyn Dauter (Dance), Ava Bloomfield (Instrumental Music), Madelyn Chase (Literary Arts), Jason Augustus (Production Arts), Abigail Lichtenwalner (Visual Arts), Dylan Vlasak (Theatre), and Amanda Marko (Vocal Music). In addition, the School Counseling Department presented the Overall Academic Excellence Award to Chelsea Marcelle, the Overall Dedication Award to Ashley Lebron, and the Overall Citizenship Award to Taylor DeHaven.
ABOUT THE LEHIGH VALLEY CHARTER HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS (Charter Arts):
Charter Arts, opened in 2003, is an audition-based public charter school that provides a comprehensive curriculum for high school students, grades 9-12, who have a passion for the arts. Students major in one of seven artistic areas: dance, instrumental music, literary arts, production arts, theatre, visual arts, or vocal.music.
Charter Arts’ rigorous curriculum fosters both academic and artistic excellence for its students. The school’s impressive Future Ready PA Index ranking, Advanced Placement (AP) exam statistics, Keystone Exam statistics, SAT scores, prestigious artistic accolades, and graduation rate, are testaments to the outstanding.education.that.Charter.Arts.provides.
Charter Arts, is proud to continue its legacy as one of the most respected high schools for the arts in the nation. Charter Arts was one of only 349 schools in the nation to be named a 2018 National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the U.S. Department of Education. In 2020, the school earned the Title I Distinguished School designation for the fourth year in a row, placing it in the top 5 % of all Title I high schools in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Recently, Charter Arts was ranked as #1 Best Public High School Teachers in PA (out of 666) and #1 Best Charter High School in Pennsylvania on Niche’s 2021 Best Schools in America Rankings. The school is also one of only five high schools in the Lehigh Valley to make the Top 100 PA Schools list on U.S News & World Report’s 2021 Rankings.
Charter Arts is located at 321 East 3rd Street, Bethlehem PA 18015.
Information & Image Provided By:
Ann Gillette
Manager of Public Relations and Media
Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts
321 East 3rd Street, Bethlehem, PA 18015
www.CharterArts.org
