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Mayor Bloomberg and Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta presided over ceremonies Monday as 276 firefighters graduated from the academy.
This is the first class to complete the department's new, more rigorous 23-week training program.
This year's class valedictorian told classmates that being one of New York's Bravest is not something to be taken lightly.
"Do not let the praise and adulation of a grateful city inflate your ego. It's OK to be proud of your profession, but it is your profession. You're just doing your job," said FDNY Class Valedictorian Shaun Scheurer.
Among the graduates are 35 members of the military, including Christopher Little, whose family attended graduation in his place while he serves in Iraq.
Also graduating are two sets of brothers, and Matthew Sweeney, brother of firefighter Brian Sweeney, who was killed in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
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