Five Towns grads told to be resilient

Number of graduates

220

Keynote speaker

Robert Nederlander Jr., founder and president of Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment, told the graduates, "I encourage everyone to stand by their dreams and pursue them with vigor." He told the students of some of the mistakes he made in forging his company, which brings Broadway productions to China and Chinese performing arts to the United States. "Everyone makes mistakes, rookie or not. Learn from them. Be resilient."

Valedictorian

Alexander Ferguson, 21, of East Meadow, received a bachelor's in childhood education. He's hoping to start substitute teaching in the fall and plans to get a graduate degree, probably in special education. He spoke to his class about how much he's grown in college. "Gone is the lazy, underachieving teen who arrived here."

He also spoke of the distressing state of the nation's economy and said education, his chosen career, is "under attack from politicians and budget-cutters." Ferguson added, "We must always remember we need not be afraid of the future for it is us who will help shape it.