Delaware Area Career Center

This year, a record 654 students graduated from the Delaware Area Career Center.

Each came in with a different background. A different purpose. A different story.

They came from 12-plus area high schools and enrolled in nearly 30 different labs, chasing after a global array of career aspirations. Each student carried a unique personality, perspective and reason for pursuing their industry of choice.

The one thing they all had in common? They all chose to ‘make the leap.’

At some point during their high school career – whether during their junior year for our two-year students, or their senior year for our one-year students – they chose to step outside their comfort zone. They chose to go somewhere new, with new teachers and new peers, and dive deep into a subject area they were passionate about. They chose to begin their career journey before many of their peers, taking part in real-world learning experiences and earning professional certifications that would set them apart from the pack.

Along the way, they ended up making some of their best friends and memories of their high school careers – getting to learn about something they’re passionate about alongside others who share that same passion.

In the weeks leading up to this year’s Completion Ceremony, we asked our seniors from the Class of 2026 to reflect on their time here by writing a letter to their ‘sophomore selves’ – the people they were before they made the decision to apply to DACC.

They shared words of hope, encouragement and advice with their younger selves. Two years older, and at the end of their high school careers, they let them know how things turned out.

Here are five of those letters, read aloud by the seniors who wrote them:

Letter to My Sophomore Self: Royalna Kumi Yeboah (Biotechnology)