BUENA PARK – Nearly 500 Buena Park Junior High School eighth-graders broke out in thunderous applause during their school’s promotion ceremony on May 29, with some jumping from their seats to signify their eagerness to start their high school careers.

The school’s class of 2019, some adorned with leis and others sporting academic medals, ended their junior high years with a ceremony on the Buena Park High School football field with nearly 4,000 family and community members.

Eighth-grader Jacqueline Woo, who gave the event’s student speech, said she owed her school a debt of gratitude for preparing her superbly for high school and beyond and giving her the opportunity to make many close friends.

“Transitioning to high school might be harder than you think, but Buena Park Junior High has definitely prepared us in more ways that some of us can realize,” Woo said. “Buena Park Junior High will always have a place in our hearts because it might while it might have given us stress, it still helped us grow from our experiences.”

The ceremony included a presentation of the American flag by the Buena Park High School Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) color guard, Buena Park Junior High’s choir performing a rendition of “Flashlight” by Jessie J and “The Star-Spangled Banner” and remarks from teachers and administrators.

Students who earned high GPAs at Buena Park Junior High were recognized with high honors, Distinguished Student and President’s awards. Students with perfect attendance were also recognized.

Superintendent Dr. Ramon Miramontes reminded each student to surround themselves with good friends, listen to their parents and always follow their passions.

“You prepare yourselves by following your passions,” Miramontes said. “Connect with teachers, staff members, get involved in academics, the arts, music, athletics, agriculture, STEM – whatever your passion may be, get involved.”

President’s Award (Gold):
Song-Eun Ahn, Tala Alramahi, Camila Anaya, Daniel Avalos, Seongah Baek, Krysler Andrei Bagunu, Katherine Barba-Pena, Jun Choi, Seonu Chu, Mayra Diaz, Veronica Diaz, Christian Diaz-Espinoza, Sophia Fanslow, Juliana Gaerlan, Christian Marcus Gallardo, Izek Gonzalez, Savannah Johnson, Reena Jung, Ezra Kong, Daniel Lee, Jaden Michel, Mireya Mondragon, Justin Oh, Montana, Jannus Ramirez Paxton, Jesus Ramos, Jered Ricabo, Jacob Rodriguez, Luis Fernando Salas, Leila Saldana, Robyn Shin, Raphael Sim, Greggory Stoddard, Jacqueline Tapia Zapata, Parsa Tehrani, Amanda Valle, Jacqueline Woo and Leanne Yu.

President’s Award (Silver):
Sylvia Afsari, Jennifer Aguilar, Caitlyn Alba, Katelyn Alcaraz, David Alvarez, Vanessa Andrade, Luis Arroyo, Inseong Baek, Apneet Bal, Carlos Baldovinos, Ashley Barragan, Memphis Bell-Cobb, Edwin Benavidez-De La Cruz, Cristal Carrillo, Evelyn Castillo, Nicholas Chirinos, Ellen Chun, Betsaida Cordoba, Mariana Cortes, Madison Cruz, Chloe De La Cruz, J Guadalupe Diaz, David Domingo, Juliana Dominguez, Vanessa Elizarraraz, Emily Fernandez, Kain Flores, Elizabeth Fowler, Patricia Reign Francisco, Destiny Garcia, Isaiah Garcia, Stephanie Gil, Michael Philip Gutierrez, Giselle Hernandez, Faizah Hossain, Rabyana Iqbal, Delilah Jaimez, Alexis Jimenez, Sami Khalaf, Jooha Kim, Victor Kim, Kalese King, Isabella Lara, Brandon Lee, Izabella Leon, Lio Lezama Arroyo, Gonzalo Lizarraga, Angelina Luna, Emelly Macias, Alexander Maldonado, Mercedes Martell, Aubree Martin, Emma Martin, Hana Martin, Jacqueline Martin, Jareq Martinez, Kevin Martinez, Stephanie Martinez, Zariya McEwen-Henry, Delaney McPhillips, Evelyn Mejia, Kailey Mejia, Pierre Simon Miranda, Juliet Montano, Fernando Oliver Montoya, Gabriela Olivo, Jeshua Olvera, Zoe Oropeza, Daniella Orozco, Kenneth Pabros, Marlyn Padilla, Jaden Panichkul, Angela Park, Andrew Percival, Camila Perez, David Perez, Jesenia Perez, Sergio Perez, Anthony Puga, Eric Quintero, Martha Ramos Ramirez, Daniel Ramos, Anthony Reyes, Jocelyn Reyes, Pietro Sung Roh, Andy Rojo, Stephene Romero, Yadira Rosario, Leonardo Ruiz, Erik Ruiz-Paz, Stephanie Saldana, Mia Salgado, Christopher Sanchez, Chloe Serrano, Mackenzie Shane, Mya Siksay, Jocelyn Sotelo, Monique Soto, Samonika Tan, Giovanni Tapia, Iris Valenzuela, Evelyn Vargas, Justin Cody Veluz and Evelyn Zaragoza-Godinez.

Perfect Attendance:
Alondra Caridad, Andrei Christian Peran, Anndrea Circuela, Anthony Reyes, Ashlee Cortes, Brandon Lee, Daniel Lee, Danna Vivas, Devin Mann, Diana Marquez, Edrian Carigma, Elizabeth Son, Elizabeth Maldonado-Verduzco, Ethan Park, Faizah Hossain, Isaac Cho, Ivan Raya, Ivan Rodriguez Rocha, Jiayuan Song, Jocelyn Reyes, Josue Adolfo Martinez-Morataya, Jun Choi, Luis Arroyo, Luis Fernando Salas, Nina Lee, Pietro Sung Roh, Ryan Barkero, Savannah Johnson, Steven Ruiz and Yssabelle Circuela

Honor Roll 3.50-3.99 GPA:
Tanisha Aasim, Estefani Acosta, Tala Alramahi, Angel Arreola, Daniel Avalos, Ayesha Awais, Katherine Barba-Pena, Alondra Caridad, Evelyn Castillo, Sean Chang, Yessenia Chavez, Jun Choi, Ellen Chun, Anndrea Circuela, Yssabelle Circuela, Hailey Contreras, Yamileth Cruz, Chloe De La Cruz, Gael Del Rosario, Christian Diaz-Espinoza, Mayra Diaz, Juliana Dominguez, Vanessa Elizarraraz, Vanessa Estrada, Sophia Fanslow, Jacqueline Fernandez, Kain Flores, Sasha Flores, Patricia Reign Francisco, Juliana Gaerlan, Christian Marcus Gallardo, Isaiah Garcia, Yahir Garcia, David Garza, Stephanie Gil, Bethania Gonzalez, Izek Gonzalez, Valeria Gonzalez, Sarang Han, Bianca Hernandez, Giselle Hernandez, Kayla Hernandez, Alexis Jimenez, Saloni Kainth, Victor Kim, Kalese King, Daniel Lee, Lio Lezama Arroyo, Dominick Macedonio, Nayomei Magana, Elizabeth Maldonado-Verduzco, Devin Mann, Diana Marquez, Mercedes Martell, Aubree Martin, Jonah Martinez, Stephanie Martinez, Angel Medina Sandoval, Luis Mejia, Ezequiel Nunez, Justin Oh, Zoe Oropeza, Rachel Pak, Ethan Park, Zion Park, Andrei Christian Peran, Andrew Percival, Luz Perez, Jannus Ramirez, Martha Ramos Ramirez, Ivan Raya, Yvonne Resendiz, Anthony Reyes, Jocelyn Reyes, Evelyn Reyes, Jacob Rodriguez, Marilyn Rodriguez, Erik Ruiz-Paz, Leila Saldana, Monserrat Sanchez-Ramirez, Mya Siksay, Raphael Sim, Greggory Stoddard, Jacqueline Tapia Zapata, Giovanni Tapia, Sofia Trujillo, Josephine Tucker, Chaz Turrietta, Hailee Anne Uy, Amanda Valle and Irene Yun.

Honor Roll 4.0 GPA, one quarter:
Aazib Abdullah, Song-Eun Ahn, Camila Anaya, Seongah Baek, Krysler Andrei Bagunu, Daniela Blanco-Gonzalez, Valentina Campos, Jose Ceja, Seonu Chu, Allyson Clark, Chelsey Cortez, Shawn Darrow, Veronica Diaz, Alexandra Espinosa, Emily Garibay, Ernesto Gomez, Julia Gonzalez, Nadiyah Huizar, Savannah Johnson, Reena Jung, Crystal Kim, Jooha Kim, Ezra Kong, Nina Lee, Miles Lowe, Allen Macario, Lindsay Medina, Kailey Mejia, Jaden Michel, Pierre Simon Miranda, Mireya Mondragon, Juliet Montano, Nathan Oh, Fernando Oliver Montoya, Montana Paxton, Camila Perez, Joseph Ramirez, Jesus Ramos, Jered Ricabo, Ivan Rodriguez Rocha, Luis Fernando Salas, Robyn Shin, Yvette Silva, Ricardo Simon Jr., Frankie Smith, Elizabath Son, Parsa Tehrani, Iris Valenzuela, Danna Vivas, Jacqueline Woo, Chaeyun Yang and Leanne Yu.

High Honors 4.0 GPA, all seven quarters:
Camila Anaya, Seongah Baek, Krysler Andrei Bagunu, Daniela Blanco-Gonzalez, Jose Ceja, Seonu Chu, Veronica Diaz, Alexandra Espinosa, Julie Gonzalez, Sabrina Gonzalez, Nadiyah Huizar, Savannah Johnson, Reena Jung, Crystal Kim, Ezra Kong, Jaden Michel, Mireya Mondragon, Montana Paxton, Ricardo Simon Jr., Parsa Tehrani, Danna Vivas, Jacqueline Woo, Chaeyun Yang and Leanna Yu.

Distinguished Students:
Sasha Flores, Christian Marcus Gallardo, Hailey Contreras and Ricardo Simon Jr.

PHOTO CAPTION:

061019_BUENAPARK_PROMOTION1: Buena Park Junior High Principal Erik Bagger cheers on students Deondra Raglin and Inseong Baek as they gleefully receive their diplomas during the school’s promotion ceremony, held at Buena Park High School’s football stadium on May 29.