[gallery td_select_gallery_slide="slide" ids="36819,36818"] Hassan Cheruppa Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Student leaders of the International Indian School – Jeddah (IISJ) are exemplary models for tens of thousands of their schoolmates in many respects. Muhit Masood, the head boy, and Lamiah Basheer, the head girl, are stepping out of the IISJ campus with a smile after leaving behind a brilliant trail of successes and accomplishments. Their farewell speeches, greeted by a standing ovation from the packed auditorium of the IISJ Boy's Section at Wednesday's annual graduation ceremony, were the epitome of their excellent track record. In their speeches, they paid glowing tribute to their teachers, school officials and their parents and thanked them profusely for their love, care and guidance, while reminiscing their school life. They also pledged to bring honor and laurels to their alma mater. The head boy Masood's captivating recount of his school days and finally the emphasis laid on being a noteworthy citizen of the nation made the audience cheer, applaud and ponder upon the greater responsibilities of life. He shared with the audience, the 14-year long amazing journey of himself and his peers "from toy rooms to laboratories; from nursery rhyme recitation to powerful speeches in debates, and from lemon and spoon race to the cluster meet and nationals." He declared the will of graduates to meet the challenges of life and scale ladders of excellence. "This day that signifies the end of one phase of our lives and the beginning of another — a much challenging one...and move forward with confidence and emerge as successful and good human beings." Masood concluded his words with the graduation message to all: "Ignite the spark in you; follow your dreams; achieve your goals; embrace humanity; practice benevolence and create a character community." Masood, who aspires to be a chartered accountant, hails from the southern Indian city of Chennai. He is the son of Syed Masoodullah and Farhatunnisa, vice principal of IISJ Girls' Section. The parents say that Masood is a brilliant student as well as a good orator who brought laurels to IISJ. In her speech, the head girl Lamiah Basheer gave a fascinating recount of the school days and her commitment for a change toward peace and progress with wellbeing, and that was greatly appreciated and applauded by the students and the parents alike. "Today we have reached the most significant milestone of our life and first and foremost I thank Almighty Allah who has blessed us with this honor and all those people who stood right behind us, supported us, guided us, cheered us, without whom the going would not have been so easy..." She is determined to meet the challenges while stepping into the real world with a vision and mission. "Let our dream be an odyssey into the real world which begins with commitment to peace with progress for well being. The world needs us to change it..." Lamiah Basheer, who hails from Kerala, is the daughter of Mohammad Basheer Sayed Ali and Parveen Hamza, who is an IISJ teacher in the Kindergarten section. The topper of Gulf Sahodaya of IISJ, an eloquent speaker and an efficient team leader, she aspires to become a software engineer plus IAS officer. She is a good artist, and good table tennis player too.
