Alton High School Graduation 2026
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ALTON – If you missed Alton High School’s 2026 graduation ceremony, Riverbender.com offers multiple ways to watch the full event anytime, on demand. Here’s an inside look at the community members who have been there to cultivate and capture the moment, from our staff to the Alton School District.
Ryan Schlueter, a photographer and videographer for Riverbender.com, has played a major role in running the livestream production of the AHS graduation, though it hasn’t been a one-man show. Schlueter has some help from his 15-year-old son Charlie and fellow staff member Wesley Hunt, who operates cameras.
When it comes to running the livestream, Schlueter said coordination is key. He emphasized the importance of pre-production meetings with school staff members, including the high school’s IT department, to ensure the broadcast goes smoothly amid any last-minute changes.
“A lot of it comes down to just being in the right state of mind during the stream,” Schlueter said. “Any successful stream that doesn’t have any internet issues, it always feels good to push out a nice product for the public to see.”
Schlueter said his role in making the production a success is just one of many, expressing gratitude for all Alton High School staff members who make the ceremony possible.
“We appreciate all the staff at Alton High that put in time and effort to make the event successful,” he said. “I feel like a small piece of what it takes to really make things happen – they did a really good job.”
Mike Brey, a retiring assistant principal and CTE director at Alton High School, has been helping with the school’s graduation ceremony for the past 19 years. During his 28-year career with the school district, he’s seen countless students walk proudly across the stage – including his own two sons, Brian and Jake.
“Brian was the Class of 2014 and Jake was the Class of 2023 … on their years, I was one of the name readers as well, so I did get to read both of my son’s names as they walked the stage,” Brey said. “Those were two of the highlights of my academic career.”
To make each year’s ceremony a success, Brey emphasized the importance of collaboration between everyone from maintenance workers to photographers to the Riverbender.com tech team. Brey’s main role this year has been managing the task checklists and pre-production meetings for all involved and making sure everyone is on the same page. Maintenance handles the physical equipment set-up, Riverbender.com handles the livestream, and Brey oversees it all – with help from several others.
Brey said the event’s scale is far too large for any one person to manage, describing it as the school’s “Super Bowl” and a crowning moment for not just Alton High School, but the entire school district. He thanked long-time Assistant Principal Jim Glazer and Jason Dandurand for their previous leadership with the graduation program, as well as fellow retiring Assistant Principal Vernon Curvey for leading this year’s program.
“Without question in my mind, the best day of the year is Graduation Day, because it is what the kids have been working towards,” Brey said. “From kindergarten or even pre-K all the way through their senior year, that’s been their focus, is to get to that finish line … that’s why we put so much into graduation to try to make it a special event – not only for the graduates, but for the graduates and their families.”
To watch the full graduation ceremony for the Alton High School Class of 2026, see the video at the top of this story or on Riverbender.com/video, or watch it on our YouTube channel or Facebook page.
