The Beavercreek high school class of 2022 valedictorians and salutatorians are given their titles. These couple of individuals have given their time and energy to studying and it has paid off for them. however, many of them don’t feel much different. These are some of the interviews that I got to have with them and how they feel now that they have the roles and responsibilities that they have now.
Nicholas Stephenson (also known as Nick) was the first salutatorian that answered my questions, though it is cool to be honored with the title as one of the salutatorians, despite being one of the tops in his class, he said “It doesn’t feel any different than being any other student.” He was the first one to tell me that there are not many responsibilities that salutatorians have to do other than getting the honor to nominate a teacher at a separate ceremony in May. Nick plans to study pharmacy at the University of Cincinnati. Nick mentioned that when he studies he likes to rewrite his notes but different than the first time. That way helps remember important information in multiple ways.
Another Salutatorian that I have interviewed is Arunn Sankar. He agrees that he does not feel any different since he has been given the title of being one of the salutatorians. He is also going to nominate a teacher for the county award in the award ceremony that Nick mentioned. Arunn told me about a study method that he uses which is to do outside research on topics, he said “ Delving deeper into the content that we discuss in class and taking notes on my own time helps me solidify what I learn”. He has not made solid plans for where he wants to go to college but he hopes to study mechanical engineering. His dream would be to work at NASA one day.
One of the Valedictorians that has answered my interviewing questions is John Wang. John feels very honored with one of the highest awards you can get in your high school years but does not feel anything different than before. He does have an option to give a speech at graduation but did not tell me if he was or not. John also gave the study methods he used the most, which was active recall, he would use it when he was working on things “ such as doing practice problems or writing down [his] ideas.”
The third salutatorian is Alan Xie, he feels very honored in getting this achievement. However, Alan prides himself even more because of all the hard work and effort he put in during my classes to get all A’s throughout my high school years. He also feels that he only has two responsibilities as a salutatorian, recognizing a teacher and setting an example, he wants to lead by example academically, behaviorally, and by always having a good mindset. Alan Xie also wants to go to college but he wants to also “Adopt a cat, maybe two” and also “pursue an education in computer science, then leave an indelible mark on humanity.” However, Alan did not study as much as the other students who got this achievement, instead, Alan finds it helpful to “think about stuff you’ve learned about before you sleep, while eating, or any other time you aren’t busy. It helps reinforce and can help your brain click.”
The fourth and final salutatorian that I have interviewed was Jason Xiao, who felt honored to be one of the students at the top of his class. He gave a shout-out to everyone around him that helped him get to where he is today, including Mr. Ankrom for giving him the idea to make to-do lists when studying which is really helpful because it always helps him stay organized. He thinks that being a salutatorian does not have any responsibilities besides being one of the academic role models for the rest of the school year, and he is very honored to have that role. He wants to study pre-med in college but has not decided where to go yet. He was kind enough to also mention another study method that he uses that is to “study with instrumental music, which helps enable [him] to focus whenever [he] is trying to force himself to study.”
The Beavercreek Beacon wishest the valedictorians and salutatorians the best of luck and can see each one of you doing amazing things in the world. The other valedictorian did not answer my interviews but his name is Shreyas Teegala.