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IB students get special honor at pinning ceremony
By DONNA WINCHESTER © St. Petersburg Times, published January 28, 2001 ST. PETERSBURG -- A special moment during a special ceremony brought students and faculty of St. Petersburg High School to their feet Wednesday night. During the school's first International Baccalaureate pinning ceremony, two IB students were given the responsibility to take a pin to the parents of a classmate who was killed in an automobile accident in June 1999. Joanna Kedzierski would have graduated this year. Joanna's classmates, along with members of the class of 2002, helped launch a new practice at a school with deep traditions. Although St. Petersburg High has been granting IB diplomas since 1984, it has never had a pinning ceremony, according to assistant principal and IB program coordinator Linda McPheron. "Members of the parent advisory committee heard me talking about ceremonies at other schools," she said. "They made it their priority to start a pinning ceremony at our school this year." McPheron said that since International Baccalaureate North America was in the process of updating its logo when the decision was made, the committee planned the ceremony for January, when the new pins would be ready. Next year, the ceremony will take place in September and will honor juniors who have completed the ninth- and 10th-grade pre-IB curriculum. Special guests at Wednesday's ceremony were Florida Commissioner of Education Charlie Crist and Paul Campbell, associate director of International Baccalaureate North America. A 1974 graduate of St. Petersburg High, Crist congratulated the students, as well as their parents, brothers, sisters and grandparents. He reminded them that many people were responsible for their success. Campbell, representing the national IB office in New York City, challenged the students to use their hearts and souls as well as their minds to become compassionate and committed citizens of the world. School Board members Carol Cook and Max Gessner and guidance counselors Carolyn Nelson and Keturah Pittman were recognized during the ceremony.
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