Gov. Nixon to be Commencement Speaker at Northwest High School Graduation Ceremony

Gov. Jay Nixon is scheduled to be the commencement speaker when the Northwest High School Class of 2011 graduates on Saturday, June 4.

"It's kind of a neat thing, and an honor for the kids to have the governor at their graduation," said Paul Ziegler, superintendent of the Northwest R-1 School District.

Nixon hails from Jefferson County, a native of DeSoto.

The Saturday scheduling of graduation exercises has been the preferred day of the week in past years, Ziegler said, allowing families to plan parties on that day and providing an opportunity for more out-of-town family members to attend.

Ziegler said the setting of a last day of school for the 2010-11 school year, which affects the commencement ceremony, has been a bit of a moving target. School cancellations due to inclement weather had pushed the last day of classesl until June 6. But Ziegler said pending legislation in the Missouri General Assembly would excuse as many as five days of classes, allowing the school year to end on June 1.

Pending an additional whether-related interventions, the Northwest High School Commencement Ceremony will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, June 4