All 118 members of the Annandale High School Class of 2016 will gather for the last time at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 20, for their commencement ceremony.
While graduation marks the end of an era, it also is a launching pad from which students will disperse to work, serve and further their education in places as far away as Florida and as close as St. Cloud.
Most members of the class will pursue some form of additional education. Those attending trade and technical schools intend to pursue careers as electrical linemen, welders, train conductors, construction workers and more.
Those attending traditional two- and four-year colleges and universities intend to study a diverse range of subjects, from game design and development to journalism and broadcasting, and from wildlife biology to radiological science.
Among those attending college are nine students who plan to participate in college athletics. Two girls plan to play basketball and two boys will play football.
Others plan to participate in volleyball, cross country, baseball, cheerleading and rodeo.
At least seven graduates plan to enter the workforce immediately without additional schooling, and at least six students intend on serving or continuing to serve in the military. That group is evenly divided among military branches, with two each serving in the Navy, Air Force and Army or Army National Guard.
Popular destinations
As usual, St. Cloud is the most popular destination for students seeking post-secondary education.
St. Cloud Technical and Community College has attracted the most Annandale students of any single college, with 15 graduates enrolling there. St. Cloud State University is the most common four-year choice, with 12 future Huskies coming out of AHS.
Bemidji State University and Minnesota State University, Mankato are the next-most popular in-state four-year colleges, with six graduates headed to each of those institutions. The University of Minnesota Duluth is attracting five Annandale graduates, while its counterpart in the Twin Cities has just one.
The most popular out-of-state school is North Dakota State University, which will lure nine graduates across the border. The University of Wisconsin-River Falls is a distant second in that category, with four Annandale grads.
Almost all students who are continuing their education will do so at public schools. Only four had definite plans to attend private institutions, including the University of St. Thomas, Bethel University, The College of St. Benedict and the University of Jamestown. That is a significant decrease from last year, when 17 students attended private schools.
All college students are planning to stay in Minnesota, Wisconsin or the Dakotas with the exception of two, both of whom are headed to Florida for schooling at Palm Beach Atlantic University and The University of Tampa.
Common areas of study
One of the most common areas of study for college-bound students is the medical field, with at least 17 students oriented in that direction. That number includes eight nursing students, two pre-med students and a variety of other fields.
The next most popular career field students will pursue is education, with 12 students planning to become teachers in math, music and more.
At least 10 will seek degrees in the sciences, with biology and wildlife biology accounting for a significant portion of that total.
Nine students aim to pursue degrees related to business, and at least five students will study various fields of engineering.
For more information on the Class of 2016, see the special graduation section included with this week’s Advocate.
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