CHUGWATER – There wasn’t a dry eye in the Prairie View Community School (PVCS) gym after graduating senior Ethan Murray Van Why finished strumming his guitar as he sang “God Speed” by Zack Bryan during the Chugwater schools graduation ceremony on May 25.
Seniors Courtney Erin Weaver, Ethan Murry Van Why, Judson Williams Norfleet and Katherine Ann “Annie” McDonnell received their diplomas at PVCS’ second annual high school graduation on Sunday.
Altogether, this graduating class secured roughly $10,000 in scholarship money to continue their education.
Weaver is starting her next step in life on a mission trip in Canada; Van Why, who earned numerous local and state scholarships, is headed to the University of Wyoming (UW) in the fall to study ranch management and agricultural leadership; Norfleet is headed to Santa Fe College in California for a two-year degree before he plans enroll in engineering school in Florida; and McDonnell will be heading to UW this fall to work on a degree in computer science.

Keynote speaker, PVCS science teacher Kaycee Scherger, had much to say about this year’s graduating class, aside from how proud she was of their accomplishments.
“Let’s be honest – this class is special,” Scherger said with a cheeky grin. “Not the fill-out-a-report kind of way, but the fully hilarious, unpredictable and occasionally wildly dangerous type of way.”
To each student, she reminisced about their education journey and things she learned about them. She noted how Annie was the “Mary Poppins” of the group and always had exactly what everyone needed – and then some – in the endless abyss of her backpack. She told Courtney how impressed she was of both her maturity and ability to rally her fellow seniors as the “ring leaders” of sorts. When it came to Judson, she told him she was always blown away by his uncanny ability to utilize technology to accomplish his tasks. As for Ethan, she called him “the snack meister,” because wherever he went or was at, he always had snacks, and even shared them.
This sentiment was shared by many others in attendance and who spoke on behalf of the four graduating seniors – but mostly, they believe these four are well on their way to doing remarkable things in their futures.
Like in years past and as in tradition, this years’ graduating senior class presented the six-graders who are moving up to junior high with the symbolic key to the school – passing on the baton to the next generation of Chugwater graduates.
This year, the class walked out of the gym with their diplomas in hand to the Star Wars theme song, because it is their class song. The 2025 class quote is, “Slap some bacon on a biscuit, we’re burning daylight,” by John Wayne. And their class motto was, “Hang on to your dreams, the future is built on dreams.”
Congratulations PVCS Class of 2025, may your dreams take you far and near, from the staff at The Platte County Record-Times.