Diplomas were awarded to 26 graduates of Portsmouth Notre Dame Junior/Senior High School by principal J.D. McKenzie and school board president Richard Kielmar at a commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 16 in the school gymnasium. A baccalaureate Mass was celebrated on Friday, May 8.
This class of 2026 was offered a total of $1,589,412 in scholarships and accepted $509,276 of that total. Seventy-five percent of Notre Dame’s graduates are pursuing higher education. Nineteen of the 26 graduates will be attending seven different colleges or career centers. The total number of service hours contributed by the graduating senior class was 1,150.
GRADUATION: Salute to the class of 2026
The class valedictorian was Luke Cassidy of West Portsmouth. Cassidy is the son of Dan and Amy Cassidy. He has accepted a scholarship to Morehead State University, where he will major in Business Administration.
The salutatorian was Lyndsey Schaefer of West Portsmouth. Schaefer is the daughter of John and Stephanie Schaefer. Lyndsey has accepted a scholarship from Shawnee State University, where she will major in Elementary Education.
Students graduating with Honors Diplomas were: Luke Cassidy, Kaitlyn Entler, Maycee Ford, Laney Hannah, Cameron Kempf, Caroline Mauk, Chloe Parks, Lyndsey Schaefer and Alayla Soard.
Notre Dame High School presents three special awards voted upon by the faculty. The Citizenship Award was given to Caroline Mauk for her contribution of time and energy to civic, community and school projects, and her demonstration of kindness, empathy and respect to fellow students.
The Senior Service Award was given to Lyndsey Schaefer for her generosity with her time toward both coursework and extracurricular activities.
The Outstanding Senior Award was given to Luke Cassidy as he has best fulfilled the various roles of scholar and leader in the school and community and has demonstrated outstanding character and service to others. Most importantly, he has demonstrated, on a daily basis, high Christian ideals in all of his activities
Members of the Portsmouth Notre Dame Junior/Senior High School Class of 2024 are:
Zion Boerger, Madison Bowen, Luke Cassidy, Kaitlyn Entler, Connor Estep, Kennedy Foley, Maycee Ford, Braylon Gilpin, Laney Hannah, Olivia Hess, Jonathan Hiles, Ronald Hiles, Kaleb Holsinger, Coden Hunt, Cameron Kempf, Joshua Kielmar, Ethan Kingrey, Caroline Mauk, Bryce McGraw, Haylee Mosley, Kailee Ogier, Chloe Parks, Lyndsey Schaefer, Coleman Shaffer, Alayla Soard and Xavier Williams.