EXCELSIOR SPRINGS – The summer sun was bright, but on the first day of August, not so hot – in the 80s rather than the 90s or over 100 degrees – as about 400 guests took their places on stainless steel bleachers overlooking seniors dressed in black or gold gowns. In the stands, David and Linda Bender use an umbrella to keep off the sun. David Bender says they came to cheer one of the seniors, Kyle Bender. Topping off a gold gown, the color for female grads, Morgan Schindler’s mortarboard includes a sentiment: “There’s no telling how far we’ll go.” The sentiment is appropriate for Schindler, a National Honor Society member and class valedictorian. Gracie McLaughlin’s hat reads, “Thank you, Mom and Dad.” A bejeweled “20” for her graduation year is attached to her tassel and she wears buttons showing family members’ faces. A black gown is about all senior Brandon Gluhm wears. He sits alongside other graduates on a folding chair on the track next to the football field. His wardrobe…