EAST PROVIDENCE — They are among the first to finish a term at the new building and first to graduate from it, but their four years in total at East Providence High School will certainly leave a lasting impression on the top three students academically in the Class of 2022 and the rest of their peers.

Valedictorian Sophia da Silva, salutatorian Lily Budnick and avedatorian Matthew Rogers will lead their mates through commencement exercises at Pierce Memorial Stadium, weather permitting, Friday night, June 3. Events are slated to begin at 6:30. If rain interrupts proceedings, the ceremony is expected to take place in the large new Ramos Gymnasium on the high school campus at the same time.

da Silva ranks first, coming to the district for high school after spending her elementary and middle years at St. Theresa School in neighboring Pawtucket. She’s headed to the University of Rhode Island in the fall with the intention to study Geology. Still a bit undecided on where that will lead, da Silva said he could either teach or more likely become a research scientist. Salutatorian

Budnick, who attended Myron J. Francis Elementary and Edward R. Martin Middle schools in city, will attend Brown University later this summer. She plans to major in Neuroscience on a pre-med track.

Ranked third, Rogers, like Budnick, attended Francis and Martin before entering EPHS. He’s headed north to the University of Vermont-Burlington where he expects to study Plant Biology.

While their stories of success in the classroom and their aims for college and beyond aren’t quite so different than many of their EPHS peers of the past, how they got to their graduation day is definitely a bit unique.

The members of the Class of 2022 began high school like any other group of students in the fall of 2018 as wide-eyed freshmen before finishing up that year in late spring of 2019 somewhat more seasoned. They confidently entered the old building a few months later in August, but could never have expected their sophomore year to be ended abruptly by a global disease called COVID-19 in March of 2020. As juniors, they weathered the worst part of the pandemic, splitting time actually in the classroom and learning online before finally being able to return to some sense of normalcy this past year as seniors and with the added benefit of finishing up their secondary careers in a brand new building.

“It was good to get back,” da Silva said of taking instruction in school again. “The first year was normal. We had a full first year. But I didn’t like the virtual learning, so I did the hybrid last year. But it was good to be back in school this year. I’m really glad that I did have as close to normal a senior year. My sister (Emma) didn’t last year, so I was happy to have it this year.”

Said Budnick of the opportunity to have at least one year in the new building, “I think it’s really nice to be the first class to graduate from here. It’s such an upgrade from the last school. And the whole high school has brought so much to the town itself, everyone wants to come see it, so it’s just nice to have had a chance to be a part of that.”

Budnick, a four-year starter on the’ girls’ soccer team and a captain last fall, not only is part of the initial class to graduate the new EPHS, she and her teammates also officially opened the new main athletics field, recently-christened “Townie Stadium,” with a 2-0 win over visiting West Warwick in the initial varsity contest held there late last summer.

“Being the first team to play on the new field. We were the first team to officially have a game on the new field, and that was a really big moment,” Budnick said. “A lot of people came to the game and a lot of people wanted to see the new field. That was a really special time.”

One of Rogers’ lasting memories from his time at EPHS will be the chance to study in the new greenhouse, the hands-on learning experience he had there and the relationships he forged while participating as a saxophonist in the band program.

“I used to be very closed off and shy, but the robustness of the school community kind of opens you up,” Rogers explained of how EPHS prepared him for college. He continued, “You have to integrate yourself. It’s a great place to be. And there are a lot of people here who really care about you. You can feel it. You can go as far as you want.”

For da Silva, she said she’s grateful for the chance to have one final year with her peers, during which she “made some really good friends this year, so I’m glad I had the opportunity to do that.”

Her commencement speech will echo those thoughts. daSilva will talk about “the memories we’ve made and the things we’ll never forget. We have a lot more to come, but we had a lot of fun here.”

Budnick’s theme is “connectivity…the connections we’ve made all through high school. And how those connections kind of stopped growing due to COVID, but then like this year how we all were able to come back together. And how we will maintain the connections we’ve made here, but will also make new ones in the future.”

Rogers’ reflections are a fitting capper to the experience of the Class of ’22.

“Mine is sort of remembering the suffering we had during COVID, but how it sort of led to a glorious final year,” he said. “We all came together and did great things. It’s celebrating and congratulating each other on a great last year here.”