The Brief
- Fremont High School’s valedictorian challenged his fellow graduates to find their “why.”
- The Oakland teen, Dominic Antoine Jr., represented his class after graduating with a 4.3 GPA.
- The mood was festive, joyful, and celebratory as he crossed the stage to receive his diploma.
OAKLAND, Calif. – His classmates, school officials, friends and family could hardly contain themselves.
On Thursday, as Dominic Antoine Jr. walked onto the stage where upwards of 1,000 people filled the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, the crowd erupted in cheers for the valedictorian of Fremont High School in East Oakland.
Getting their flowers
It was a moving ceremony that included a special symbolic act of handing out flowers to the male graduates. The tradition, organized by Fremont High College and Career Readiness Specialist Jaliza Collins, was designed to put an extra spotlight on the graduating young men on this milestone.
Men often don’t get to receive their flowers until something bad happens, or worse, at the end of their lives, Antoine explained, so he reveled in this meaningful gesture and passed out his own set of flowers to his male friends and teammates to celebrate their collective accomplishment of graduating.
Antoine, affectionately known to most as just “Pooda” soaked in the graduation ceremony and all the moments full of joy. He walked into the theater with his arms raised as he cheered. On stage, he hugged his smiling and proud school administrators, receiving claps on the back and in full celebratory mode.…