Westerville North High School held its 18th annual Yellow Rose Ceremony on August 16, 2024 to celebrate the 

tradition that began in 2007. This tradition brings together students, faculty, and families to celebrate and prepare for the seniors’ last year of High School.

During the ceremony, the 2025 Student Class Officers delivered speeches that resonated with students across all grades. “I really liked them, I felt like they really put a lot of time and effort into them and that they really cared about the people who were listening,” Summer Rackley (‘28) said. She also said that the speeches made her consider her own future saying, “After they did their speeches I was like, huh, that seems like an interesting thing to look into.”

“I thought [the student’s speeches] were really thoughtful…I needed to hear them,” A senior at North said. Shiloh Turvover (‘25) talked about the connection between the speeches given at the start of high school and those at the ceremony. “He brought up the parallels between the freshman year speech where he talked about what to expect, and (in) the senior speech he talked about what to expect in the future onward… it was a nice way to prepare you for the future,” Turvover said.

For Westerville North’s Principal, Kurt Yancey, the ceremony held personal importance because he watched his daughter Rose receive her yellow rose. “It feels special to see my daughter getting the yellow rose because my son wasn’t able to experience it due to COVID,” Yancey said. 

Just like Yancey, Nevaeh Payne (‘25) related the ceremony to her personal family. “It felt weird and unrealistic receiving the yellow rose because I had seen others and even my brother receiving it years prior,” Payne said. ”It made me realize that I grew up fast and it felt unbelievable.”