Seniors walk tonight

Nearly 700 high school students on Kauai will be tossing their caps into the air tonight.

“To the Class of 2018, I bid a heartfelt congratulations,” said Bill Arakaki, Kauai Complex Area Superintendent.

The Kauai High School commencement ceremony will be at Vidinha Stadium at 5:30 p.m.

Gates will open at 4:45 p.m. for guests with admission tickets. A keynote address will be presented by Deija Ashlyn Melchor.

The school will present 242 diplomas, with students being accepted at nearly 60 different colleges and universities. More than 70 Kauai High grads have earned scholarships.

The Kapaa High School commencement ceremony will be at Bryan Baptiste Sports Complex at 6:30 p.m., with 273 students graduating.

Principal Daniel Hamada said about 77 percent will be furthering their education at either a technical, community or four-year university; 17 percent are going directly into the workforce with 6 percent enlisting in the military; and 27 percent will be the first in their families to attend college.

Nearly $3.5 million has been received per scholarships/grants.

“And we expect this amount to go up as not all of them have been reported/awarded,” Hamada said.

Kapaa High has 41 valedictorians with a 4.0 and above.

The Waimea High School graduation is set for 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on the school’s front lawn with an estimated 130 students graduating. Seating for the Waimea ceremony will open at 5:15 p.m. for ticket holders.

The Island School graduation ceremony takes place June 2 at Wilcox Gymnasium from 2 to 6 p.m. The school will have 35 graduates.

Island School seniors received 125 acceptances from 87 colleges and universities and received $2 million in scholarships.