Valedictorians Crowd Podium As Grades Rise

How many valedictorians does a graduating high school class need? One? Six? Eighteen?

Most graduation ceremonies across Spokane County this month will honor more than one valedictorian. Mead High School has 15, Ferris 16, Shadle Park 17, and Central Valley 18. Each earned straight A’s for four years.

At least one Spokane County school district thinks it has too much of a good thing. Later this month, the Central Valley School Board will consider new standards for selecting valedictorians.

Spokane School District officials say they’re not discussing any change; neither is Mead School District.

“These students have worked hard for four years to achieve a 4.0, and they should all be recognized,” said Laurine Jue, Spokane School District spokeswoman.

But, said Mike Pearson, director of secondary education for Central Valley, “If you look in the dictionary, the definition of valedictorian is the one student who is selected or elected to give the presentation at graduation.”

Across the state line, Post Falls School District has stuck to one valedictorian, while Lakeland School District is honoring four.

“Normally we only have one,” explained Lakeland High School Principal Charles Kinsey. “We had four outstanding students who met all the criteria.”

This year, Central Valley School District’s two high schools, Central Valley and University, produced a combined 28 valedictorians. Last year, there were 24.

“What really brought it to the table was that a lot of students will sign up for a class - say, honors English - then they get in there and find out they may get a B, so they withdraw and go into (regular) English, to maintain their A’s,” Pearson said. “They want to protect their 4.0.”

Currently, a 4.0 cumulative grade point average, or the best GPA in the senior class, earns the title of valedictorian, no matter what classes the student has taken.

Central Valley’s proposal would add two advanced placement courses to the requirements. In a tie, the student with the highest number of advanced classes wins. If the board approves, that standard will be phased in over the next three years.

Coeur d’Alene School District requires honors classes, but school officials believe the district still has too many valedictorians. Lake City High School has 15 this year and Coeur d’Alene High School has 10.

The class of 1999 will usher in an age of tougher requirements. Instead of three honors classes, they’ll have to take five from three of the core areas: math, science, English and social studies.

Although relatively few students are involved, the issue has been a hot topic at Central Valley School District. At its heart, the debate is about academic rigor vs. academic recognition.

“Probably a majority of folks say, ‘We applaud the rigor. But don’t do it while my child is in school,”’ Pearson said.

That opinion has come even from parents of seventh- and eighth-graders, he said. Reaction was particularly vocal early on, when the district wanted to make the changes immediately.

The school district has answered parents’ concerns well, said Carol Numata, a Central Valley teacher and the mother of a junior who is a potential valedictorian at University High School.

“You can’t expect kids to accomplish things if they didn’t know they were supposed to accomplish them in the first place,” Numata said.

Now, back to the issue that must be on the minds of many parents and grandparents: How does one handle graduation speeches with so many valedictorians and salutatorians?

Ferris High’s 15 valedictorians will read selections from a Dr. Seuss book, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go.”

At Shadle Park, each valedictorian will recite one verse of a poem they wrote together.

At Central Valley, the 21 valedictorian and salutatorians were divided into three groups of seven. Each group will get a total of three minutes to deliver a speech.

“We can’t let them each speak,” said Stan Chalich, senior class adviser. “Can you imagine how long we’d be there?”

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: BYLINE = Marny Lombard Staff writer Staff writer Susan Drumheller contributed to this report.