Congrats NS 2025 Valedictorian & Salutatorian
Aaryan Vira and Kaitlin Ho
Photos by HS Student Lila Frame
Congratulations to North Shore's Valedictorian, Aaryan Vira, and Salutatorian, Kaitlin Ho. Both students spoke on Friday, June 27, at the 2025 High School Commencement Ceremony and were celebrated by their beloved families and friends as well as everyone at the North Shore School District who was in the audience including Superintendent Dr. Chris Zublionis, Principal Eric Contreras, Board of Education members, Administrators, faculty and staff.
Valedictorian, Aaryan Vira
Aaryan Vira took the podium at the 2025 North Shore High School Commencement Ceremony while family, faculty, BOE members, and his peers watched with joy and admiration. He stated, “…Good afternoon, teachers, administrators, families, friends, and of course, the North Shore Class of 2025. I am honored to be standing up here today to talk about our journey and the future. We have conquered the struggles of studying late for exams, practicing hours for concerts and performances, training early and late for sports games and matches, and preparing for presentations and competitions to arrive at this day. We even turned in our rundown Chromebooks. So, congratulations to all of us, we did it! …”
Later in his speech, Aaryan said, “…After we graduate today, we begin to embrace adulthood. And if there’s one thing music has taught me, it’s that the most powerful moments come when someone dares to take a risk—a note outside the melody or beat that changes everything. As we move forward in life, we won’t always know the notes to the path ahead, and that’s ok. The road to success is always under construction, kind of like our high school front entrance. It’s ok to make mistakes, to fall down, to fail. Perfection is an illusion. As the great jazz musician, Miles Davis, once said, “Do not fear mistakes, there are none.” The knowledge gained from failure far outweighs failure itself. We live life to the fullest when we have the courage to take risks and stray away from the beaten path. So as we step into the next moments of our lives, let’s keep playing boldly. The world is waiting for our sound. Thank you!”
Congratulations to Aaryan Vira, the Valedictorian of the North Shore School District. His academic achievements include AP Scholar with Distinction (2023-25), recipient of the Herman Weisman Award for Excellence in Chemistry, Louis Armstrong Jazz Award, Tri-M Award, Harvard Book Award, Rensselaer Medal, First National Bank of Long Island Math Award, Junior Award for Excellence in Social Studies, and Junior Award for Excellence in Social Studies to name a few! Aaryan also served as Secretary and Band Liaison of the Tri-M Executive Board and was a member of the following honor societies including the Science National Honor Society, National Honor Society, Rho Kappa National Honor Society, and Mu Alpha Theta National Honor Society. Additionally, this year, he worked on independent science research study investigating optimal use of Generative AI in high school research assistance. Through his high school years, he worked on a number of science research projects and submitted research to the Regeneron Science Talent Search as well as to the Long Island Science and Engineering Fair (LISEF), New York State Science and Engineering Fair (NYSSEF), and the Long Island Science Congress (LISC).
Aaryan is also a talented musician, playing the principal trumpet in the North Shore High School Concert Band (2024-25) and lead trumpet in the Jazz Band (2024-25). He was selected to play in the Nassau Music Educator’s Association All-County Band through the years and was an alternate jazz trumpet for the New York State School Music Association All-State Jazz Band (2024).
He also is a Varsity Athlete and has played on the Varsity Tennis team since 8th grade. In 2023-24, he played HS Varsity Tennis, 2nd Doubles and won the Coaches Tennis Award. In 2022-23, he played 2nd Singles and was awarded Nassau County High School Boys’ Sportsmanship Award for North Shore. In addition, Aaryan is trained in mixed martial arts and has volunteered with the Coalition to Save Hempstead Harbor and was a North Shore High School Writing Fellow (2024-25). He will be attending Rice University in Houston, TX, and majoring in Environmental Engineering.
Salutatorian, Kaitlin Ho
Kaitlin Ho stood at the podium as the Salutatorian of North Shore High School and said, “…As a proud theater kid and unapologetic Hamilton enthusiast, I have to begin with my favorite quote from the Broadway musical: “What is a legacy? It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.” And I think that’s exactly what high school has been—a place where we’ve all been planting seeds. Seeds of confidence, of friendship, of memories. Seeds of who we want to be and how we want to be remembered. And today is the day we begin to watch them grow …”
Kaitlin concluded by stating, “…And if you take anything from this speech, let it be this: 1. Don’t waste your time on petty drama - your peace is priceless. 2. Don’t chase what looks good - pursue what feels right. 3. And don’t sit on the sidelines - life rewards those who show up… Success will follow joy. So let happiness be your compass - and go chase it loudly. We may not always witness the impact of our actions. But like my favorite quote says - planting seeds in a garden you never get to see - our job isn’t to control the harvest. It’s to keep planting. Keep showing up. Keep choosing joy. Because someday, someone will walk through the garden we helped grow. Because that’s what a legacy really is. It’s not about awards or titles. It’s about the people you lift up, the spaces you make better, and the seeds you plant - even if you don’t get to see them bloom. Thank you everyone and good luck!”
Congratulations to Kaitlin Ho, the Salutatorian of the North Shore School District. Some of her accomplishments include the North Shore High School Student Government President, Head Organizer of the Districtwide Lunar New Year Event, a Regeneron Science Talent Search Scholar (2025) Top 300, and competed in the International Science Engineering Fair (ISEF) as a Finalist in Animal Science category (2024). But that’s not all! Kaitlin was the North Shore High School Asian Student Alliance President and Founder (11th and 12th grades), Poetry Club President (11th & 12th grades), Mock Trial President (12th grade), Viking View Editor in Chief (12th grade). She was a member of the National Honor Society, Rho Kappa, Science, and World Language Honor Societies, and participated in Science Research at Long Island University Post working on projects in the areas of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. In addition, she received the following awards including Medal Art Award; 1 Gold Key & 2 Silver Keys Regionally (2023), The President’s Gold Volunteer Service Award (2024), Long Island Science and Engineering Fair Animal Sciences (2024) Grand Prize 1st Winner, and Science Teachers Association of New York State Highest Honor - 1st Place (2024).
Kaitlin also has been enthusiastically involved in extracurricular activities in the arts and has participated in many theatre productions including Inherit the Wind, The Prom, Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time ensemble, Hello Dolly! Ensemble, and Urinetown Ensemble. She has been involved in the art contest - Celebrating Art Eastern, the art exhibit called Make Noise Today Exhibition (Semi-Finalist), and the art publication titled, The Montgomery News. Also, she has volunteered during her high school years at the KeKe Studio in Roslyn to help raise money for universal water access. She will be attending Yale University and majoring in History of Art, on the pre-med track.
North Shore High School Principal Mr. Eric Contreras said, ““Aaryan and Kaitlin are two exceptionally talented students. They have promoted academic scholarship, scientific research, artistry, community service, and athletic prowess in multiple domains inside and outside the high school.” He concluded by saying, “Aaryan and Kaitlin are celebrated and respected by everyone. As high schoolers, they already have a spectacular list of storied achievements. They are impeccable examples of students who embody our shared values that permeate their work in all their endeavors. They have pursued diverse and impressive journeys as scholars, artists, and science researchers, and their journeys will continue to impress us all in years to come. We are proud to call them our graduates.”
Please join us in congratulating both Aaryan Vira and Kaitlin Ho for their hard work at the North Shore Schools. We wish them both the best of luck now and in the future discovering their dreams. The Class of 2025 is an extremely talented group of students, and we are all so proud of them! Go Vikings Go!
Please read more about them in the Herald at https://www.liherald.com/seacliff/stories/meet-the-north-shore-school-district-valedictorian-and-salutatorian,215885
Article by Shelly Newman Photos by HS Student Lila Frame and Shelly Newma