"Everyone here is really friendly," said Wooldridge, 18, after jotting down her homework. "We're like a family."

Such is life at Admiral Arthur W. Radford High School, where local and military students learn to embrace the myriad races, financial situations and religions of their peers.

Radford's diversity offers an adequate representation of the various backgrounds among students in schools throughout Hawai'i. Radford's seniors are among more than 10,000 graduating this year from public, charter and private schools statewide. Reflecting on a year filled with memorable ups and and downs was inevitable as the Class of 2005 wrapped up with traditional year-end assemblies, class outings and final exams — all leading up to much-anticipated commencement exercises.

For Radford seniors, feelings of sadness, fear and excitement seemed magnified after an emotional school year in which students had to cope with painful military deployments and related transfers that sent family members and friends far away. The ugliest time came in February, when Radford was depicted as a school out of control after fights rumored to be racially motivated.

Radford senior Yoshilinda Kaneko, here studying calculus, was honored as one of four valedictorians. Of the school's graduating seniors, 25 percent to 30 percent will go on to a four-year college. Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser

But born out of one of the year's lowest points was one of its proudest moments, said principal Robert Stevens. Scores of students who were fed up with the bad publicity organized an after-school sign-waving rally to combat the negative image.

"I was so proud of them holding up the signs, telling people, 'We want our school back,' " Stevens said. "That was one of the most powerful things of the year."

The experience only made Radford stronger, Wooldridge said.

The negative attention "wasn't right because Radford is such a great school," she said. "There are great students doing great things here."

School pride

School officials honored scores of Radford Rams two weeks ago during an academic awards program, the last school assembly of the year. Hundreds of students, faculty and parents packed into the gymnasium to recognize Radford's finest.

Broadwater, adorned with fragrant tuberose and carnation lei, took to the stage at least five times to accept more than a dozen scholarships and awards, including the Joint Intelligence Center Pacific's African-American Heritage Committee Scholarship, the U.S. Marine Corps Scholastic Excellence Award and the Principal's Leadership Award.

"Brittiany, just stay up here," the awards presenter joked.

Radford is made up of more than 1,300 students, including 273 seniors. Broadwater was one of more than 50 seniors who received awards and thousands of dollars worth of college scholarships.

As class president, one of four valedictorians and the state's Most Valuable Cheerleader, Broadwater, of Aliamanu Military Reservation, is one of Radford's most popular and accomplished students. But she refused to steal the spotlight.

"I'm really proud of our class," said Broadwater, catching her breath while sitting next to a pile of her framed certificates and oversize scholarship checks. "It just makes you realize how much everyone does."

Thompson, 17, of AMR, also was among the honored, receiving nearly a dozen awards, including the Howard Nemerov Writing Scholarship and the National Society of Black Engineers Golden Torch Award Scholarship.

The crowd began to holler as the presenter finished reading a long list of scholarships Thompson had earned. The reserved and soft-spoken Thompson had one of the loudest cheering sections.

"Hey, Kharel, run for president, man!" a voice rang out as Thompson walked offstage, flashing an ear-to-ear smile.

"We're extremely proud of him," said Thompson's beaming mother, Tracy Price-Thompson, 42, who was holding a disposable camera. "We have such high hopes for his future."

Thompson, who moved to Hawai'i from New Jersey last year, played varsity football, became president of the chess club and joined the National Honor Society, among other things. But one of the highlights of Thompson's last year was receiving his awards at the assembly and having his friends cheering him on in the audience, he said.

"Hopefully I can inspire them to do good things, too," Thompson said.

Senior unity

Ask seniors what the best thing about high school is and their answers likely will be the same: being with friends.

Omar Mirza and a handful of his closest buddies sat at a picnic table under a shady tree fronting Building F during their lunch break. The group of locals were enjoying Senior Week activities — eating free cheese pizza and checking out a dunking booth around the corner while listening to Hawaiian music over a loudspeaker.

Spirits were high among the mix of boys and girls, some of whom have known each other since elementary school. There was no shortage of laughter and smiles amid the festivities.

"I'm just kind of, like, shocked that everything happened so fast," said Mirza, 18, who was born and raised in Hawai'i. He already knows how much he'll miss his buddies when he leaves Radford.

"Everybody got close this year," said the Foster Village teen, wearing a black "Hang Loose" cap. "Everybody here is all close, yeah?"

There were nods all around.

Radford's sprawling 27-acre campus, nestled in Salt Lake and less than a mile from Aloha Stadium, has become a second home to students from Hickam, Pearl Harbor, AMR, Aliamanu, Crosspointe and Foster Village. Sixty-four percent of Radford's students come from military families, meaning many transfer to the school from the Mainland and abroad.

"First getting here was definitely a big adjustment, but everyone was pretty friendly," said Hickam resident Michael Rolon, 18, who moved to Hawai'i from Puerto Rico last year.

Radford students are receptive to new faces on campus, said Cliff Fukuda, student activities coordinator.

"People are warm to you because they understand how it feels to move every three or four years, and lose all your friends," Fukuda said.

The school's Transition Center was a big help during the adjustment period, Rolon said. The facility, developed three years ago, helps military students adjust to their new environment by offering campus tours, a lunch buddy program and tutorial services, among other things.

One of Rolon's new friends is Justin Quinones, 19, of Hickam. They were among 75 seniors who participated in Senior Sneakaway two weeks ago at Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park.

Rolon and Quinones clung onto a neon-green, two-person inner tube and braved the "Shaka," screaming and laughing down the thrill ride's steep slide. The students spent a warm day with unlimited access to cool, chlorinated attractions like the rough waves of "Hurricane Bay" and the slides at the "Flyin' Hawaiian." Lunchtime grinds included barbecued chicken, kalua pork, corn and watermelon.

"This is one of the last times they'll be together with their senior classmates," said senior class adviser Mildred Hetrick, watching her students eating and taking pictures of one another during lunch. "They don't realize it yet, but it's almost done; two weeks from today they'll sit together for the last time as a class, and I don't think they realize yet that it's about to come to an end."

The dreaded finals

It was all Steve Badua could think about during his last week of school.

The 17-year-old from Salt Lake kept busy during his third-period business computer applications class, trying to wrap up a Microsoft Excel final project. But lingering in his mind was a physics final three days away.

"I only have that one," said the varsity tennis and volleyball player, "but I'm scared."

Badua, born and raised in Hawai'i, planned to spend the next few days concentrating solely on the science test.

"I just asked my friend if I could come over and study today," Badua said.

In fourth-period geography, Amanda Bush, 18, gave a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation on the role the U.S. Navy played in major battles and wars. Bush, wearing her hair in French-braided pigtails, appeared comfortable and spoke confidently to her classmates, who paid close attention.

"Without the Navy, we wouldn't have won all the wars we won," said the Hickam teen, wrapping up her presentation.

Geography teacher and 2000 Radford alum David Anderson gave his students a month to prepare their video and PowerPoint presentations on movement, one of five geography themes the class covered this year.

"I put this in lieu of an exam because I figured they have too many exams going on," said Anderson, who blended in with his students, thanks to his spiky red hair, white- and blue-striped polo shirt and cargo pants.

Bush was satisfied with her hard work and glad to be done with it.

"I was the first project to go," Bush said, smiling. "Now I get to just watch and relax all week."

The road ahead

With Friday's commencement exercises nearing, Radford seniors are preparing for their futures and the many paths that lie before them.

Of the school's graduating seniors, 25 percent to 30 percent will go on to a four-year college; 35 percent to 40 percent will go on to a two-year college; 9.7 percent will join the military; and 6.8 percent will opt for a full-time job, school officials reported.

Bush enlisted in the U.S. Navy earlier this month.

"I want to travel, see the world," Bush said with wide eyes, "and a lot of that's from Radford, just listening to people and all the places they've been."

She starts boot camp Nov. 1 in Chicago. Until then, she plans to work full time as a childcare provider.

"I'm nervous, but I'm excited," she said, "excited to start my life and not live under my parents' roof anymore, to be independent."

Hawai'i local and varsity football receiver Chad Cordes, 18, of Foster Village, also can't wait to start his new life.

"I just want to move on," said Cordes, who will attend the University of Hawai'i-Manoa to major in civil or mechanical engineering.

Like Cordes, Jonah Bautista will go on to a four-year college. Bautista, one of Radford's four valedictorians, will attend the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

But for the Honolulu resident, 18, the excitement of graduation and new beginnings are overshadowed by the recent deployment of his father — a tech sergeant in the U.S. Air Force — to the Middle East.

"He's not going to be here for graduation, and he's going to be gone when I move off to college," said Bautista, staring blankly at the ground. "I probably won't see him until December, so that's a definite low."

Still, Bautista looks forward to the next chapter of his life.

"On one hand, you don't want to leave behind your friends and just being in high school, but you also recognize that need for change," Bautista said. "It will be a big step."