Mother, son share Farmington graduation stage in dual degree milestone

Kimberly Kiszka and her son, Aspen Archuleta, shared one of the evening’s most unusual graduation moments at Hutchison Stadium: mother and son crossing the stage in the same season, on parallel education paths that ran through Farmington High School and San Juan College.

Archuleta was among 376 members of Farmington High School’s class of 2025, and principal Rocky Torres said 10 students in the class earned certificates or associate degrees from San Juan College. Another 73 seniors finished with at least 12 college credits, seven graduates enlisted in the armed services and five completed high school early.

The ceremony on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, unfolded with the Farmington High School Band playing “Pomp and Circumstance,” the JROTC presenting the colors and the Farmington High School Orchestra performing the national anthem. For Torres, the class carried a special meaning: these seniors were his first freshman class when he became principal in fall 2021.

That made the milestone more than a standard May graduation. It marked a four-year stretch in which students moved from the first days of high school into college coursework, military service and postsecondary training, often before they left Farmington High School at all. The dual-degree path taken by Archuleta reflected a local system built to let students start college early and finish with credentials in hand.

San Juan College, Farmington’s community college, offers associate degrees, certificate programs, workforce training and transfer pathways. Its 2026 graduation program lists Kimberly Kiszka as an AAS Dental Hygiene candidate, underscoring that the family’s achievement was not a one-night exception but part of a broader local pipeline that connects high school classrooms, college classes and career preparation in San Juan County.

The class also included valedictorian Dominik Lopez and salutatorian Darin Hilton, and seniors headed to campuses including the University of New Mexico, Boston University, Florida Institute of Technology and Duke University. Together, those plans showed a graduating class spread across military service, immediate workforce entry, local college completion and competitive four-year admissions.

For Farmington, the image of Kiszka and Archuleta stepping across the stage together captured something bigger than family pride. It showed how San Juan County’s education pathways can carry more than one generation at once, and how Farmington High School and San Juan College are building routes that let students leave with both a diploma and a degree.