By Richard Bammer
With just minutes to go before the 2015 commencement ceremony, Maine Prairie High School Principal Yvette Ramos said, “The kids have had to persevere. It’s been a tough year in Dixon.”
Standing in the Dixon High theater, where the graduation was held Wednesday, she alluded to the April 17 shooting death of Maine Prairie junior Charlie Moore Jr., the Dixon High electronic grade-changing scandal that made national TV news in mid-May, and last week’s widespread — and costly — vandalism just a few steps outside the 300-seat theater on the College Way campus.
On a more upbeat note, she added, “It’s a good group of kids,” with 16 of 17 seniors “walking” to pick up their diplomas and later celebrate with family, relatives and friends.