- June 21, 2025
Flagler Palm Coast High School Principal Bobby Bossardet stepped to the podium during the school’s 50th graduation ceremony on Wednesday, May 28, and told the 2025 graduates that this isn’t just graduation.
“It’s a milestone, a legacy 50 years in the making and you just delivered a chapter that no one will ever forget,” he said. “Tonight we celebrate the unforgettable impact you’ve made on FPC.”
Bossardet recognized graduates who participated in performing and visual arts.
“The Formality Singers earned superior at states and at Disney they lit up the stage. The Starlets dazzled, bringing home medals with glitz, glamour and a whole lot of grace,” he said. “With heart and talent, and standing ovations, our thespians packed the house again and again. The FPC band has 21 straight years of superior ratings. That’s not luck, that’s a dynsasty.
“Every artist reminds us that arts aren’t extra, they’re essential,” he said.
Bossardet, who is an FPC graduate himself, went on to recognize students who distinguished themselves in service organizations such as Key Club, Leo Club and Friends For All Abilities. JROTC cadets gave over 3,200 hours of community service and two cadets earned full ROTC scholarships to become future military officers, he said.
Academically, FPC’s 2025 class has 28 National Honor Society scholars, 26 students who completed the International Baccalaureate program and 38 who are also receiving associate degrees. The class has nearly 200 graduates with honors and 26 who shattered the 5.0 GPA ceiling, Bossardet said.
FPC graduates earned 140 industry certifications and the class received more than $1 million in combined local scholarships.
“Those are scholarships powered by Flagler folks who believe in you,” Bossardet said.
Athletically, 22 FPC graduates signed letters of intent to play college sports, six won state championships and 23 sports had team GPAs over 3.0.
Academic organizations DECA (business), HOSA (future health professionals), Mu Alpha Theta (mathematics) and Future Problem Solvers all excelled in competition, he said.
Bossardet also recognized graduates who weren’t in any of those groups but overcame hardships, worked full time or took care of siblings and graduated with the rest of their class.
“Their real strength isn’t loud, it’s rising when no one’s watching. So if you were tired, hurting or barely hanging on but still showed up, you didn’t just earn a diploma, you earned our highest respect,” Bossardet said. “We see you and honor you and this moment belongs to you too.”
Bossardet said every single graduate had a team behind them consisting of families, friends, faculty and staff.
“Class of 2025,” Bossardet said, “you didn’t just follow tradition, you transformed it. … You changed the game right here in the golden year of FPC.”
Graduate Anjelina Manjarres delivered the commencement address.
“We may have been asked the question, ‘What are you going to do after high school?’ But maybe the true question should be who are you going to be after high school,” she said. “You might want to be remembered as the smartest in the room, but maybe being the kindest takes you further.
“A lot of our identities reflect our accomplishments, not our potential,” Manjarras said. “You can choose to be a doctor or see yourself as someone who cares for the ill. It’s not about the title you have after graduation but the person you become.”
Class President Dyllis Mballesube and Vice President Ana Vilar were the first to speak.
“It feels like yesterday, our freshman year, wandering the halls unsure where to go," Vilar said. "We found our way one class at a time ... Life will be the same. We may not know where we’re going at first, but we’ll figure it out one step at a time until we find our place in this world.”
