Rockcastle County High School held its commencement ceremony for the class of 2025 at Rockcastle County High School; the ceremony date was not specified in the transcript.

Principal J.D. Bussell opened the program and recognized staff, custodial and technology teams, and members of the Rockcastle County Board of Education before the school presented academic honors and individual recognitions.

The ceremony included a formal roll call of graduates, the Spirit of the Rock award for a longtime teacher, an address by the senior class speaker and a ceremonial tassel change to mark the conferral of diplomas. The transcript records that “this class of 2025 has over 99% of its students who have achieved the honor of being college and career ready as defined by the Kentucky Department of Education.”

Bussell, identified in the transcript as Rockcastle County High School principal, thanked school employees and named custodial, facilities and technology staff who helped set up the ceremony. He asked those who worked for Rockcastle County Schools — current and past employees, including teachers, instructional assistants, bus drivers, cafeteria workers and custodians — to stand so graduates could recognize them.

The transcript lists members of the Rockcastle County Board of Education who were onstage with Bussell: Angela Stalsworth Mink, Anna Stevens Goff, Matt Coloff, Lisa Cornett and Angela Parsons Woods. Superintendent Dr. Carrie Ballinger and Rockcastle Area Technology Center principal Sherman Cook were also listed as joining the stage for the introduction of the graduating class.

The ceremony named several seniors who had committed to military service and recognized them by branch: members of the Army National Guard (Serena Henson, Landon McPheron, Trinity Messenger and Kayla Sams), the U.S. Army (Andrew Messenger and Aiden Lohrey) and the U.S. Navy (Maya Gamble and Rocky Miller). The transcript notes some of those students were scheduled to ship out as soon as the following week.

Student Council’s Spirit of the Rock recognition — an annual award chosen by student council vote to honor staff impact — named Scott Adams as the 2025 recipient. The transcript describes Adams as a longtime mathematics teacher at the school who returned to teach after becoming eligible for retirement, and who is active in raising Simmental cattle and operating a woodworking business.

Senior class speaker Dana Kowalen reflected on shared experiences and urged classmates to stay connected. “This is the last time we will all be together in one room, making it a very bittersweet goodbye,” Kowalen said in her address, according to the transcript.

The program concluded with the traditional simultaneous change of the tassel and a closing line from school staff reading, “For the very first time, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the Rockcastle County High School class of 2025. Congratulations. This concludes our graduation ceremony. Be safe and go in peace.” The transcript does not provide a date for the ceremony or a final count of graduates beyond the names read on stage.

The transcript supplied a full roll call of graduates, which is recorded verbatim in the transcript; the article summarizes that portion rather than reproducing the full list.

Why this matters: the school emphasized academic readiness (more than 99% meeting Kentucky Department of Education college- and career-ready benchmarks) and highlighted students entering military service and a longstanding teacher honored by peers. The recognitions and the readiness statistic are relevant to families, school staff and the wider Rockcastle County community moving forward.