As Jack Higgins walked onstage to accept his high school diploma, he covered his ears to block out what he thought would be cheers, but instead, he was met by complete silence for the best reason possible.

Jack is a 21 year-old young man who has severe autism, and his parents feared that he would struggle dealing with a loud crowd cheering for him. However, they still wanted to see him walk across the stage to get his diploma like any parent would.

“He has a lot of sensory issues, noise being one of them,” his mother Barbara Higgins explained. That’s why she met with Carmel High School principal Lou Riolo so that she could share her concerns. The principal then came up with the idea to have everyone be silent as Jack walked across the stage.

Since teenagers can be unpredictable, getting everyone to agree to this would be no easy task, but Lou was determined to make it happen. Before Jack came up to get his diploma, Lou told everyone in attendance to remain silent and offer only a soft golf clap. That’s how Jack ended up walking onstage to a silent standing ovation.

“The students were amazing. They are a class act and superseded expectations,” Lou said. “I truly believe people have a kind, compassionate soul and they want to help and this was one of those occasions.”

This just goes to show that even with all the negativity in the world, there are still good people out there! Check out the touching moment for yourself below.