Elizabeth Kessel was named the Valedictorian of the Berkeley Springs High School Class of 2025, and Kevin Anderson was named Salutatorian of the class.
There were 120 graduates in the Class of 2025, which held their commencement on Thursday, May 22 at Berkeley Springs High School’s football field amid unpredictable weather that cleared in time for the ceremony.
Retired Widmyer Elementary Principal Rick Weber was the featured speaker for the commencement ceremony. Weber was the principal for many of the graduates as they began their Morgan County School education in kindergarten.
Grant Michael led commencement introductions, followed by speeches from the top graduates in the class and guest speaker Rick Weber.
Top grads
Valedictorian Elizabeth Kessel is the daughter of Ryan and Susan Kessel. During her high school career, Kessel was an AP scholar with distinction, taking 12 AP classes also having achieved straight A’s in high school.
Kessel was Historian of the National Honor Society, President of Mu Alpha Theta, President of Rho Kappa’s inaugural chapter, Co-President and inaugural member of National Art Honor Society, and a member of Science National Honor Society.
She participated in Teen Court, Quiz Bowl, Research club, Math Field Day, and the state chess tournament.
Kessel played bass guitar for the Black Cat Music Cooperative for three years. As an artist, she has had artwork displayed at the MAC Ice House for all 4 years of high school and is currently selling pieces at the Creekside Collective Gallery.
In 2023, she attended the Governor’s School of Arts with a studio art discipline at Marshall University. In 2024, she attended the Governor’s Honors Academy at Fairmont State University.
In the fall, she will be attending the University of Notre Dame to study engineering with a minor in art.
She spoke to her classmates about making connections with her fellow students throughout her high school career, and discovering new opportunities along the way.
Kevin Carleton Anderson II is the son of Crystal Smith and Kevin Anderson. Anderson has lived in Morgan County his whole life. He is a member of National Honors Society, Science National Honors Society, Mu Alpha Theta, Quiz Bowl, and Teen Court. This year Kevin was President of Interact Club, PR Chair of Rho Kappa, and Treasurer of Tri-M. In his junior year Anderson was the Historian of Tri-M and his Quizbowl team placed third in regionals. Over his high school career, he volunteered with the Morgan County Backpack Program. Since middle school Anderson has been a member of the Black Cat Music Cooperative family and assisted in numerous live concerts with set up, live mixing, and striking. Anderson is an AP Scholar with distinction and has received the Principal Honor Award every year of high school. He is the recipient of the QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship, a full four-year scholarship, and several local scholarships. Anderson will be attending Tufts University in the fall pursuing a major in computer science and a minor in music engineering. Anderson spoke about the opportunity for students to discover their true identity and not be afraid of standing out or being judged as they go forth into the world.
