Graduation 2026: Granada Hills Charter seniors celebrated their graduation on Thursday evening

It was a cool and cloudy spring evening for the graduation ceremony at Granada Hills Charter on Thursday at John Elway Stadium on its Zelzah Avenue campus.

While their caps and gowns for the 1,160 seniors who were eligible to graduate kept out some of the chilly air, their family members in the stands were fired up with applause and cheers for students.

The Class of 2026 included more than 360 students with a grade point average of 4.0 or higher. Two who achieved that lofty GPA level were also speakers during the ceremony.

Isabella Estephan, 4.4659, the associated student body president, gave the year-in-review address. She will attend UCLA and plans to study human biology and society.

Jason Thomas Bowden, 4.86, delivered the valedictorian address. He will attend Stanford University and plans to major in biology.

Among the Class of 2026 graduates with an inspirational background story was Venice Hernandez, the first in her family to attend college. She has been accepted to attend Yale University School of Medicine. Her dream goal is to become a rheumatologist so she can help others, like herself, who have an autoimmune deficiency.

Aiding her in this health care goal have been close family members. Her parents, immigrants to the United States from the Philippines, laid the groundwork for her success in school by example of their own perseverance, resilience and hard work.

Role models also include her grandmother, who helped raise her while her parents were at work, and two aunts who are in nursing careers.

In a school press release, it was noted that Hernandez is known by many students “as a quiet leader — the kind of student whose impact comes not from seeking attention, but from living with intention, empathy, and deep care for others.”

Granada Hills High School opened in 1960 in the Los Angeles Unified School District. The LAUSD school board voted in 2003 to allow the high school to become an independent charter school.

The “Home of the Highlanders” is known for its United States Academic Decathlon teams and wins. The team won its 10th title (in 15 years) in April 2026 for studying the 2025-2026 theme “The Roaring Twenties”. ghctk12.com/news/news-and-announcements

Granada Hills Charter, Zelzah Campus, 10535 Zelzah Ave. 818-360-2361. facebook.com/granadahillscharter. ghctk12.com/programs/grades-9-12