Top grads Murphy, Iwaszczuk friends, competitors

West Milford High School Class of 2024 valedictorian Ava Murphy and salutatorian Colin Iwaszczuk gave speeches at commencement Wednesday evening, June 19.

During an interview before the ceremony, Murphy said, “I’m excited. It’s definitely slightly scary to have a lot of change ahead of you. But it’s exciting for the most part.”

While she wasn’t actively pursuing the role of valedictorian, it lines up with her goals of personal academic success. “I’ve always been very driven with school,” she said. “I definitely am a perfectionist.”

Her speech aims to balance her achievements with those of the class as a whole. She wanted to highlight collective struggles, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, while also taking time to recognize what it took to earn the role of valedictorian.

Finding, telling stories

Murphy’s main academic interests are English, music and history, and she loves finding and telling stories in all three.

“It’s the story aspect,” she said when asked what attracts her to those subjects. “And also with music, it’s also a story.”

Murphy has been involved with music since she was very young. She played in the high school concert band and marching band.

She’s also the pipe major, who leads the school’s traditional pipe band, and will perform “Amazing Grace“ in a bagpipe solo at the graduation.

She plays keyboard and saxophone as well.

Murphy plans to continue telling stories through music at Rowan University, where she will be enrolling as a music industry major. The major combines technical musical production courses with music business ones, preparing students not only to produce music but to operate in the interconnected music industry.

She is grateful for the connections that band gave her, including with Iwaszczuk, a fellow saxophonist.

Competitors, friends

Although they were competitors, Murphy and Iwaszczuk are friends.

“I’m good friends with Colin,” she said, admiring his drive and passion for math and science.

Iwaszczuk agreed, saying Murphy is “as close as a sister.”

The strength in their relationship comes from their similar values and perspective, he said while also pointing to their competitive nature. “We keep each other going, you know?”

“(We) make sure we’re being the best we can be.”

Iwaszczuk will study physics at the Rochester Institute of Technology in the fall.

He has always loved math and science, especially understanding how the two “impact the real world,” he said.

He is not sure what he wants to do as a career but said he will be happy as long as he is able to continue studying the subjects he loves.

Like Murphy, he sees the honor of salutatorian as representative of all the hard work he did in high school.

“It’s been a crazy ride, and I’m happy that I got it,” he said.

Iwaszczuk wanted to bring this feeling of satisfaction to his speech, reminding the Class of 2024 of all that they have accomplished and endured. He is excited to see what the future holds for many of his friends and peers.

Both Murphy and Iwaszczuk have high hopes for their class.

“There’s a lot of bright minds in our class, regardless of how high up you are on the GPA ranking,” he said. “Regardless of what it is, they’re going to do great.”