East Mountain High School Class of 2016 Commencement Address

Trevor Crombie is the East Mountain High School Class of 2010 Valedictorian and the first EMHS graduate
to attend the Ivy League. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from The Wharton School of the
University of Pennsylvania, where his concentrated areas of study included management and real estate, with
specializations in entrepreneurship and innovation. Today, Trevor is a small business owner and a senior
staffer to Governor Susana Martinez, for whom he serves as Director of Boards and Commissions. Please
join me in welcoming Trevor Crombie.
It is my honor to be here today to join you in celebrating this special occasion and all of your
accomplishments. East Mountain continues to set an example of what can be achieved in education in New
Mexico. You, and the graduates before you, make us all very proud.
Some time ago, leaders in our community were concerned about the quality of education available to our
students. Options were limited, standards were low, and performance levels were uninspiring. While these
concerns began in the home, they quickly spread across neighborhoods and, eventually, between towns. The
call for action grew loud and the courage for change was found. Your high school our high school was
the result.
Students and their families now had a choice. Follow the established paths to schools like Manzano or
Moriarty; break the bank and go private in Albuquerque; or take a chance on a younger school with
unconventional methods and great potential.
Like some of you, I grew up on the playgrounds at San Antonito and walked the halls at Roosevelt. I was
always very academic, with high goals for my future. The ability to achieve them, however, relied upon the
opportunity to be challenged to excel in the classroom and to keep pace with the best of my peers from
across the country and around the world. High school was either going to be a launching pad or a roadblock
to what I hoped to accomplish. The choice of which school to attend weighed heavily on me. I mustered the
courage and chose East Mountain. You and I made the correct choice. This school with unconventional
methods and great potential helped set the trajectory of my life. I promise you will not regret your time here
either.
You have been pushed to challenge assumptions, to exceed expectations. You have been encouraged to
pursue passions, to master skills. You have been enabled to develop independence, to explore self. All of this
and more has been accomplished in your four short years on campus.
Through the Discovery Project program alone, you travelled the world, embraced the vibrant cultures that
define our region, and impacted our community through selfless service. And your ability to be consistently
competitive in sport and intellect has been a thrill for an alumnus like me to watch. Be proud of all you have
done; be relieved to know you are quite prepared for this next step in life. You have developed global
perspective in small-town America. That is a feat very few graduates across the country can claim and it is to
your true benefit.
But what does that mean, global perspective? To me, it is about an approach to solving problems. It is about
how we assess the world around us and how we use that information to drive change or protect tradition.
You all possess the ability to be impactful. And that is because of how you took science out of the classroom
and into the field; how you debated the efficacy of American presidential policies; how you studied languages
and arts and cultures. It is through that approach to learning and doing that you can now apply the lessons
learned across many subjects toward solving the most pressing problems of today. Your Senior Exhibition
projects demonstrated your ability to make those connections and apply them to your own lives. Use that skill
as a model for the future.

Six years ago, I delivered the valedictory before my graduating class. I spoke of the challenges we faced and
the legacy we hoped to leave. Mentally and otherwise, I was also preparing myself to leave home for the big
city; I was off to Philadelphia come fall, with no intention of returning to New Mexico. I was certain that
Wall Street was my future.
But as I flew home from Philly for holidays, I felt unsettled. Penn had exposed me to a world of new cultures
and ideas. And while flying into Albuquerque, I would watch the city I knew so well come into focus beneath
me. I would see the streets as I drove with my parents. Each time I made that journey, it seemed more
businesses were shuttered and more areas familiar in my youth were places where I would no longer be
willing to spend time. The nation appeared to be recovering from the Great Recession, but our state
apparently was not. That global perspective we share saw a problem that needed to be solved. And I could
not shake the call to help.
So, I was faced with a new choice. Did I begin climbing the ladder in corporate America or did I take a
chance on an uncertain return home to help our community rebuild. East Mountain provided me a strong
base to build on in college and I did. Could I apply my new skills to the challenges here? My choice to
return to New Mexico required great personal courage. I was afraid to abandon long-held goals. I was afraid
to take the risk. But today, I get to work every day to find ways to make our state a better place to live. The
risk, it turns out, was well worth it. But it took courage to make the move, to redirect my goals. And that is
what I want to talk about with you: courage and the ways that acts of courage will be important in your lives.
Have the courage to thrive in the uncertainty of your tomorrow. Train yourself to be uncomfortable with
being perfectly content. Continue to explore and experiment. Take your ever-growing arsenal of skills and
experiences and use them to craft a better life for yourself and your loved ones.
Have the courage not to chase fame but to seek goodness. Be empathetic to the plights of others. Live to a
standard where one day you might be privileged enough to be called a role model. Fame is lost with a tweet;
the goodness of your character and the strength of your reputation endure.
Have the courage to serve. Become involved in your community or in organizations important to you. It is
very easy to criticize from afar. Work instead to be part of solutions in society, in your church, in your school,
in your home. The satisfaction you will attain through service is immensely powerful.
Have the courage to debate ideas, not people, and the courage to learn from and teach others. Always be
questioning, but remember that when you choose to attack the integrity of another just because of a
difference in opinion, you have automatically lost the debate.
A close friend of mine recently offered a great reminder to incoming college freshmen like you. He said,
You are no more, and no less, because of what others can or cannot do. What a powerful statement. You
are no more, and no less, because of what others can or cannot do. Let that guide you as you find brilliance
in others, just as they will find brilliance in you.
Whatever comes next for you, be courageous in all you do. This is an exciting time to be young. Innovation is
occurring at a never-before-seen pace across all industries. The political arena is experiencing a once-in-ageneration shakeup. The world is adapting to new challenges and people are rising to the occasion on a global
level. Have the courage to take part.
Thank you and congratulations to the Class of 2016.