Graduates show their excitement at finishing at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)
Fifty students from the Salem-Keizer School District’s Community Transition Program were recognized Monday at a graduation ceremony.
The annual event isn’t a typical graduation – it honors students with disabilities who are exiting the life skills program designed for those who have already completed high school.
Students enroll in the community transition program after completing a modified diploma, extended diploma or certificate of attainment for high school. In the program, they work on job readiness and skills to support independent living, up to age 21.
When the ceremony was over, every graduate had parents, friends and relatives flocking around them in a virtual cloud of support and pride.
The crowd full of proud friends and relatives at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Caleb McCready has a playful moment at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Phoebe Watts gives her aide a grateful hug at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Christopher Racine holds his tribal regalia that his cousin hand beaded for him at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Michael Gamble plays the harp at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)
Josiah Duarte gives a spirited rendition of “Don’t Stop Believing” during the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Salem Keizer School Board member Satya Chandragiri gives a high five to a graduate at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)
Gifts lie waiting to be given to a graduate at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Francisco Gonzalez Gonzalez shows off his certificate of achievement at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)
A graduate holds his certificate as he listens to the final presentations at the Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)A graduate holds her certificate as she listens to the final presentations at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter) Matthew Churchill was much more excited by his gift bag than his certificate at the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)Mariah Kessler spent a long time picking out the perfect shoes for the Salem Keizer Community Transition Program Graduation Ceremony at Chemeketa Community College on June 5, 2023. (Laura Tesler/Special to Salem Reporter)
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Laura Tesler has lived in Salem, Oregon for 20 years and is originally from Flint, MI. Laura has been an underwater photographer for 15 years, and is an avid scuba diver. Topside, she has been taking photographs since age 12, and currently works on assignment for the Salem Reporter, and full time purchasing land for fish and wildlife habitat in the Willamette Valley. Laura attended Oregon State University, and has traveled extensively all over the world and the United States.
