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Celebrating Outstanding Keys Awardees for SY 2024-2025

July 23, 2025

Keys School Manila believes that true achievement goes beyond academic performance. Our progressive educational approach nurtures students who excel in their studies and show the values that define our community: Respect, Inquiry, Collaboration, Excellence, and Social Justice.

This month, we are proud to highlight two outstanding Keys Awardees who represent what it means to be well-rounded students—Anton Ibarra from Primary School and Boris Uy from Secondary School. These individuals have demonstrated that academic skill and character development are linked. They inspire their peers and contribute meaningfully to our school community.

Their stories remind us why we are dedicated to creating an environment where students grow not just as learners but also as thoughtful, engaged citizens who will have a positive impact in the world. Join us in celebrating their achievements and the values that motivate them especially by reading the graduation speeches they wrote and delivered themselves last May 26, 2025 at the MK Tan Hall, Bayanihan Center at Pasig City.

Good morning, everyone!

To our administrators, teachers, Keys staff and personnel, and our number one fans, our parents and grandparents—thank you for being here! And to my fellow graduates of Grade 6… CONGRATULATIONS! We did it!
I honestly have mixed feelings standing in front of you right now:There’s some pressure- because there’s my ate who also gave the commencement speech when she graduated from Poveda 10 years ago.
But there’s also this very warm feeling. We’re in the Unilab Bayanihan auditorium, where my Lolo Dan, who passed away last October, served for 35 years. I feel him watching over me right now, his favorite boy-apo, with a big smile on his face. I feel his love and presence, so I'm also comforted.

As my Mama Tin can attest to, I'm not the best in Language and Literacy (lol), so allow me to use the “language” I know best…. BASKETBALL!
Before the non-basketball players groan, please give me a chance to explain. I promise you’ll understand.
This whole school year felt like one long basketball season for me.

There were fast breaks: like when we rushed to finish homeworks; timeouts: thank you, sudden class cancellations and long weekends; some buzzer-beaters: like submitting projects one minute before the deadline….you know who you are lol! But through it all, we played hard. And today, we’re not just students—we’re champions!

Now, before we move on to Grade 7—where the court is bigger, the plays are tougher, and we’ll probably get blocked by algebra (lol!)—I want to share a few lessons I learned this “season” that I think we can all bring with us next year to win again.

Grade 7 is a “game.” And just like any sport, you can’t win it in the first minute. To do well, we have to keep at it the whole time and:1) be good teammates to each other; 2) continue to use/develop our skills;3) keep our head in the game;4) own our fouls; and5) pass the ball often.

First: Let’s be good teammates to each other… in other words, let’s be good students and persons for others. Every great team needs players who pass the ball, cheer each other on, and don’t foul just because someone irritated them. Being a good student is like being the team player everyone wants—we help others, play fair, and make the whole squad better.

Second: Continue to use and develop our skills, or: use our talents or what we’re good at, develop them, and contribute! Not all of us are point guards or shooters. Some of us are artists, writers, singers, speakers, or math masters. Whatever your skills are —use them! Develop them! And contribute the same skills to the team- our class. And if you’re not sure what your skills are yet, don’t worry. Even Steph Curry had to learn how to shoot once.

Third: Keep your head in the game. Stay hopeful even in the face of challenges! There were days this year when it felt like we were losing the game—low test scores, arguments with friends, or exerting so much effort in our part in the group work, yet not being able to deliver on presentation day. What’s important is that despite these low points, we kept going. We kept showing up. That’s hope! That’s heart! That’s MVP-level stuff.

Fourth: Own our fouls or be accountable for what we’ve done and do better next time. Let’s face it—we all mess up sometimes. Maybe we forget our homework. Maybe we talked during quiet/reading time. Maybe we argue too much and hurt the feelings of another. Maybe we accidentally hit someone’s water jug and made it fall on the floor…The important thing is: own up to it. Don’t blame the ref—or another classmate, or walk off without fixing it. Saying sorry and being sincere about it go a long way.Last point: Pass the ball. You can’t win basketball by yourself. Let’s keep/nurture the relationships we’ve formed. This year, we laughed, fought, teamed up, made up, and had moments we’ll never forget. We had so many bonding moments together- our field trips, PE games, STEAM fair projects, talent shows, Clever Day, HELE dinner, weekend basketball games, hangouts, and so much more. Let’s take care of the friendships we’ve nurtured this year. Say hello and chat even after school, hang out together this summer, reach out. Don’t forget to say thank you to your parents and teachers—they’re the real coaches. And remember, great teams win together, never alone.

I can go on, but I know some of you are excited over your team lunches-your family lunch, so let me summarize already.

We don’t need to be anxious over what’s to come. Let’s bring the lessons we learned from Grade 6 so we can do well in Grade 7:First: Let’s be good teammates/classmates to each other.Second: Continue to use/ develop our skills and contribute.Third: Keep our head in the game and stay hopeful even in the face of challenges. Fourth: Own up to our fouls and our mistakes and be accountableAnd last: Pass the ball and continue nurturing our relationships, maybe even reach out and form new ones. We can win anything TOGETHER!

To our teachers—thank you for being the best coaches we could ask for. To our families (hi Papa and Mama!)—thank you for being our home-court advantage. And to my classmates: River, Aoki, Evita, Stella, Kaira, Noey, Ami, Ava, Gaeun, Ellie, Belli, Rocio, Matteo, Lucas, Anton Son, Pax, Noah, Aly, Julian, Nate, Myles, David, and Javi- thank you for making this the best team I’ve ever been a part of.

The Grade School final buzzer has sounded… and we’re walking off this court as champions!So lace up, keep practicing, and let’s get ready for the next big game—Game 7! I mean, GRADE 7!

CONGRATULATIONS, TEAMMATES! AND BRING IT ON, VIA!

*Highlighted words and phrases are emphasized by Anton Ibarra, the author.

Good afternoon, classmates, teachers, family, and friends.

I want to start by saying what an incredible honor it is to be standing here today as the Keys Awardee. Honestly, if you had told anyone in this room five years ago that I’d be up here giving this speech, they probably would’ve laughed. I mean, I was that kid in primary — the one who got called into Teacher Leah’s office more times than I can count. And let’s be real, it wasn’t for awards.

So when I got the announcement a little over a week ago — right as the EAs were wrapping up — I was proud. It felt like all the hard work had paid off. Sure, the title came with great things: that sense of reward, being someone others could look up to, and even something extra for my Ateneo confirmation. But there was one thing that hit me harder — I had to give a 10-minute speech in front of all of you.

And honestly? That made me more nervous than some of our exams. Which might be a surprise coming from someone who did well in tests and can be the loudest in class. And yes, I’m a Keys IB graduate who’s done more than enough 15-minute IOs and presentations. But this felt different.

So I asked myself, “Why am I this nervous?” And I realized — I wasn’t just writing about myself. I was writing about some of the best years of my life, and the amazing people I was lucky enough to spend them with. I wanted to capture our story. The good, the messy, the real. And the worst part is, I only had a few days left to write it.

So I did what any Batch 2025 student would do in a high stakes situation with a tight deadline: I asked for help from our best friend — ChatGPT.

So I typed in a prompt, something like: “What do you put in a graduation speech?” Then I moved to YouTube and searched: “Top 10 graduation speeches that made everyone cry”. And of course, I went on TikTok.

Some of them started with not knowing who was next to them. Some mentioned the great achievements and schools they got into.And some even mentioned the hardships they went through due to their background.

But it’s different with us. We’ve been together for more than 10 years. We’ve laughed together, cried together, survived IB together, but most importantly… We partied even harder together. None of what I saw could truly capture what it felt like to be us. So instead, I decided to write about what I’ve been feeling these past few months.

They said Year 2 would go by fast. I didn’t believe them at first, considering our first semester wasn’t. But then January hit, Agu’s countdown on the whiteboard started ticking down, and suddenly the EAs were over. And that’s when it hit me — something we like to call “senioritis”. Not just the lazy version of it, but the kind where you start looking back and wishing things would slow down. And I know you’ve all been feeling the same way.

To keep that feeling — to hold onto this chapter a little longer — I continued our tradition of “being main character” and started watching trilogies that capture wonderful journeys: I started with Guardians of the Galaxy and High School Musical since we sang their songs in our last two Christmas programs.

And after finishing those, I decided to watch some childhood favorites to add to the nostalgia. How to Train Your Dragon, Disney’s Cars, and that’s when I stumbled upon Transformers (and also because I wanted to see prime Megan Fox again).

But anyway — there’s this moment in Transformers, right after Bumblebee defeats Barricade in their first real showdown. The dust settles, the tension breaks, and Bumblebee’s car door swings open for Sam and Mikaela. It’s their chance to run, to hide, or to choose something bigger — something unknown.

Sam Witwicky says:
“Fifty years from now, when you’re looking back at your life, don’t you want to be able to say you had the guts to get in the car?”
Hearing that line on numerous occasions — watching Transformers for the 100th time with my family — it never really meant anything. It was just another line in the middle of explosions, alien robots, and getting a pretty girl. But watching it again now, after finishing high school, it suddenly meant something different. Something real.

Getting in the car isn’t just about a crazy adventure. It’s about saying yes. It’s about choosing to live even when you’re scared, even when the road doesn’t come with a map. It’s about making decisions not because they’re safe or perfect, but because they mean something to you. It’s about stepping forward knowing you might fail, but doing it anyway.

And over the past two years — especially this final one — we’ve all had those moments. Moments where we didn’t feel good enough. Where we regretted subject choices. Where we got that rejection email we really didn’t want to open. Where we stayed up late studying and still ended up with a 2 in physics (sorry again, Teacher Audrey). It’s frustrating. It hurts. But it’s real. And that’s where we grow.

We don’t figure out who we are when everything goes right. We figure it out when we mess up. When we make the wrong call. When we fall short and still choose to try again. That’s when we start to hear that voice inside saying: “This is who I want to become.”

We live in a world that’s obsessed with achievement. With chasing the next award, the next school, the next goal, and so on. But what if we started seeing growth like that too? What if we saw our failures — our missteps, our cringe moments, and our not-so-proud grades — not as things to be ashamed of, but as steps on the path toward becoming someone better?

We didn’t just survive the IB. We learned how to be accountable. How to get up when things didn’t go our way. How to say “this one’s on me” — and still move forward.That’s the kind of growth that matters. That’s the kind of story I want to look back on 50 years from now — not one where I played it safe, but one where I had the guts to get in the car. And I hope you all do, too.

So before I end, I just want to say thank you. To our most loyal companion ChatGPT — We couldn’t have done it without you.To our families — for loving us when we were tired, moody, and overwhelmed.To our teachers — for sticking with us even when we emailed at 12 a.m. asking for an extension.To my best friends — for making every moment feel less like school and more like home.To my classmates — for the comfort, the memories, and for making this ride unforgettable.To my parents, thank you for raising me with the right values, discipling me, trusting me to be independent while still always being there for me, and for buying me the things I like.And to my brother, thank you for all the FIFA games, football talks, fit pics, and small lessons from your experience in IB and more. I know you’re busy, but it would be nice to talk more. And also for you to finally save me as a contact on your phone…

The IB was hard. It stretched us, tested us, and made us question our life choices. But honestly? I’d do it all over again if it meant I could have these same moments with all of you. This journey has been nothing short of wonderful and I can truly say these have been the happiest 2 years of my life so far. While most of us will probably be hanging out at Ateneo — eating lunch together, chilling between classes, or enjoying the dinners that Agu promised to host — some of us are moving far away. But even then, just know: we’re all one message away. Waiting to hear about your next chapter, your crazy adventures, and missing you deeply. Just like our Christmas Program moment, singing “Just Wanna Be With You,” feeling high school musical main character, especially with our very own “Gabriella”, we’ve always been — and always will be — all in this together.

I know we all wanted things to slow down, and we might not be ready for how quickly everything’s changing. We’ll miss the comfort of Keys — seeing the same faces in the hallway, laughing in our lounge, cramming and complaining together, and spending almost every day of our lives together. But that’s the thing about time — it moves, whether we’re ready or not.

So as we leave this room, as the graduates of Keys School Manila’s Batch 2025, I encourage you all to: “Let time pass — let it hurt, let it heal, and let it teach. Because in the end, time doesn’t wait, and neither should we. So live boldly, remember freely, and carry your mistakes not as burdens, but as proof that you were brave enough to try and figure out who you are.”

Thank you everyone. I love you all, and congratulations again, Batch 2025.
*Highlighted phrases and sentences are emphasized by Boris Uy, the author.

Anton and Boris show what Keys School Manila wants to develop in every student: young people who value both academic success and meaningful character growth. These graduation speeches remind us that education goes beyond textbooks and test scores. As they start the next chapters of their lives, both students carry not only their academic successes but also the values that will guide them as thoughtful, active citizens. Congratulations again to Anton Ibarra and Boris Uy, our Keys Awardees. Their journeys remind us why we believe that true achievement goes beyond grades and touches the essence of who we are and who we want to be.