Monroeville charter school celebrates service, achievements of 6 graduates

More than 100 people attended Spectrum Charter School’s graduation ceremony in Monroeville on May 23, when six seniors received their high school diplomas.

Spectrum students, families, board of trustees, faculty and staff gathered for the ceremony and luncheon to recognize graduates J. Balf, Jackson Carney, Aiden Ferguson, Mira Shank-Koster, Jupiter Shannon-Tarkett and Andrew Szczerba.

“The faculty and staff at Spectrum Charter School are very proud of the 2025 graduating class,” said Matthew Erickson, principal and CEO. “It has been a pleasure to be a part of their educational journey.”

During the ceremony, students also were recognized for their service in the community by Gina Colosimo, volunteer and food drive manager with the Westmoreland County Food Bank.

“It was an honor to attend Spectrum Charter School’s graduation ceremony,” Colosimo said. “We are proud to work with the school, and have the students volunteer at the Westmoreland Food Bank. Each year, I am honored to acknowledge Spectrum’s senior students with a certificate of appreciation for their volunteer efforts.”

Colosimo said she hopes that the students’ volunteer efforts has helped them to develop skills they can use for employment after graduation.

“Volunteerism helps us to fulfill our mission of feeding our neighbors – assisting them in meeting their basic needs – through our various programs (like the) food pantries, community meals, specialty programs and mobile distributions.”

In 2024, the food bank served more than 20,000 people per month with the help of more than 5,000 volunteers.

“We would not be able to accomplish this important work without the effort of all our volunteers,” Colosimo said. “The students played a role in that, and they are amazing. Volunteers are truly the heart of the organization.”

Spectrum Charter School Inc. was founded in 1999, making it the first autism-specific charter school in the country. The school’s curriculum is designed to meet the academic and emotional needs of students who may not necessarily learn as well in a traditional classroom setting.

In addition to their high school diplomas, most of the seniors received certificates from Forbes Road Career and Technical Center. Erickson said the graduates plan to enter into competitive employment, trade programs or attend college.

“Each student has a bright future ahead of them,” Erickson said. “It is a happy day to celebrate their success in the classroom and community, but we will surely miss them.”