Michelle Obama found a way to delight graduates of a high school touched by tragedy

Michelle Obama gave the graduation speech to King College Prep High School seniors on Tuesday night and found a way to delight them amid somber tones of mourning for a classmate who had been shot, The $4.

The Chicago high school was hit with tragedy two years ago when 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton was shot and killed in a neighborhood park. The class mourned her absence, and an empty chair draped in her favorite color, purple, was left open for her.

The deceased teenager had performed $4 

The First Lady challenged the graduating seniors to rise above the hardship they have faced at a young age, and to bring positivity and success to themselves, their communities and the world.

And in a surprise twist, she brought a video of the cast members of the ABC show "Scandal" congratulating the class on their accomplishments.

The video was a hat tip to the King College seniors, who secured Michelle Obama as their graduation speaker after they won a student video contest that parodied "Scandal" and promoted student applications for college financial aid.

Watch the video below to see the entireity of the First Lady's graduation speech:

In another graduation that made headlines this year, the First Lady advised graduates of the liberal Ohio college Oberlin $4.