SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — Cheers and applause filled the SUNY Sullivan auditorium on Thursday, June 25, honoring the graduates of the Sullivan BOCES Class of 2026. Speakers praised the students, noting the work they’d put in to reach that momentous occasion, and gave kudos to the family members and supportive people who’d helped them get there, while giving them a glimpse into what the next chapter may hold for all those upon that stage.
“You are stepping out into a world, and it’s a different world,” said Linda Berkowicz, president of the SUNY Sullivan Board of Education. “You don’t go to the same place every day anymore; you don’t have your mom [or] someone checking on you all the time.”
“But you’re going to have responsibilities,” Berkowicz continued. “And if you’ve made it this far, you’re going to do great making it further, because you’ve learned to be responsible.”
Sullivan County Court Judge James Farrell served as the evening’s keynote speaker.
“I offer my heartfelt congratulations—you made it!” he said, drawing cheers and applause from the audience.
Farrell said that this was the largest graduating class in recent memory, and offered congratulations.
“The journey may have been hard, may have been filled with many challenges, but each of you, in your own unique way and manner, persevered, and met those challenges to arrive here,” said Farrell.
Farrell said that, while students were graduating and had many different futures ahead of them, they would all continue to learn; learning was a part of the human condition, independent from formal schooling, he said. “Your potential is limitless, and you will set the trajectory of your future, tonight and forever,” he said.

Monticello Central School District student Elias Bonilla shared reflections on his experience with Sullivan BOCES. Bonilla had attended Sullivan BOCES since 2018 and was graduating that night.
Bonilla said that he had been struggling both behaviorally and academically when he first came to Sullivan BOCES. “In a traditional school setting, I often felt that I was falling behind, or being misunderstood… through [BOCES’] special education services, I was given structure, consistency and support tailored to how I learn,” he said.
Staff worked with him to build behavioral tools and to help him stay engaged with his education, something that built his confidence, he said. “This kind of growth doesn’t happen in a classroom. It happens when students are understood and supported, and challenged in the right way. That’s what BOCES does.”
Bonilla said he participated in the animal science program through the career and technical education center, an experience he said was “incredibly important” to him.
He added that, while he understood school districts often saw BOCES decisions as a matter of numbers, budgets and outcomes, he hoped that administrators would consider the students behind those statistics.
“BOCES is not a last resort,” he said. “It is a resource. It is an investment in students who need a different approach in order to succeed.”