student with highest GPA barred from being valedictorian

[alkemyst]

Also re-reading the article, it seems they were going to let her be valedictorian, just that it wasn't a single position. It seems the school wanted more of a group valedictorian presence than just a single person.

The article isn't really clear.

 

[LordMorpheus]

Also re-reading the article, it seems they were going to let her be valedictorian, just that it wasn't a single position. It seems the school wanted more of a group valedictorian presence than just a single person.

The article isn't really clear.

Eh, they named another student co-valedictorian when it should have gone to only the girl with the rhyming name, for no clear reason. I'd be pissed, too.

 

[halik]

Ha 46% black school is now classified predominantly white?

 

[SKORPI0]

Last time I checked Valedictorian=highest GPA. Hopefully school loses the suit, they took away that moment from her to address the graduating class. Same thing to the school board that made that stupid decision, they should be out of their job. They don't belong there.

 

[tynopik]

co-valedictorians is fairly common

mine had 4 even though they weren't actually that close in gpa

i think it has to do with being a valedictorian helps with college admissions, so the more students the school can place into prestigious schools, the better it looks

thus the pressure for 'valedictorian inflation'

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Tha fuck? If you have the highest GPA you're the V. Period. That's the definition of valedictorian. Highest GPA.

Another reason why I refuse to live in the states... Ak/Hi FTW... Fuck the rest of you.

 

[zanejohnson]

wow. fuck that.

 

[TridenT]

I just remember the school speech that the girl wrote for our high school graduation was quite self-centered and was mostly based upon her and her friends. Actually, any speech was practically like that at the graduation. I remember thinking, "Wow. So, basically, this is a graduation ceremony for all the popular kids?" Graduating class of 80 or so kids.

The valedictorian or whatever was just the person with the highest GPA. I think she was the only 4.0 out of our entire school, but she was a dumbass really... She just took a lot of easy classes and did the work. It didn't take more than that. (Doing the work)

 

[wiredspider]

If the school is nearly 50% AA, what would be so unusual about a black valedictorian?

Yea, I'm Asian and still got to be valedictorian of my 70%+ AA HS school.

co-valedictorians is fairly common

mine had 4 even though they weren't actually that close in gpa

i think it has to do with being a valedictorian helps with college admissions, so the more students the school can place into prestigious schools, the better it looks

thus the pressure for 'valedictorian inflation'

I don't know why, you apply for colleges several months before graduating so it's not like you would know if you are valedictorian or not..

I think this might have more to do with it than her race. Amazing how the article slips that in at the very in lol. I don't think that the fact that she has a kid should disqualify her, just that the concern of the school is for something entirely different than it is made out to be. They don't necessarily care that they have a black valedictorian, the "big mess" is because they don't want Teen Mom giving the speech. I guess race makes for an easier lawsuit.

Yea, odd they only mentioned that little tidbit once. Maybe, when she was out, they felt sorry and gave her As?

 

[judasmachine]

I don't remember my HS graduation ... it was too long ago, at a time when men were men and women were glad of it.

We would have never accepted this kind of crap back in the day.

Depending on your age, this kind of crap was accepted all over the place back in the day.

 

[moshquerade]

Before I mount my high horse I want to hear the school's response to this story -- Black Student Can't Be Valedictorian -- based on an allegation contained in a lawsuit: That the poetically named Kymberly Wimberly was unfairly demoted to co-valedictorian at an Arkansas high school because administrators thought it would cause a ruckus for an African-American student to be the sole valedictorian.
Whether or not this tale confirms the persistence of ugly racism, it certainly seems to support my belief that little good comes out of the practice of naming valedictorians.

http://blogs.chicagotribune.com/news_columnists_ezorn/2011/07/huge-scandal-brewing.html

^I agree with this guy. The mother's side, which is all we've heard, shows the lawsuit seems to be based on what she overheard in the copy room at school.

The school's side is sorely needed here.

If the allegations are true I hope the mother wins, the daughter wins, because being excluded because of skin color is absolutely barbaric.

 

[Macamus Prime]

I would like to hear the school's side as well.

However, I hope when they are interviewed, they leave the moonshine jugs, straw hats, dirty/soiled overalls and their donkey with a rope tied around it's neck, at home.

Also, they don't have to wear "them thar shews", but I hope they at least clean their feet. Or rather,... foots.

 

[sao123]

this is very disgusting behavior on the part of the school, they should indeed be sued and she will ultimately get a free post-secondary education.

 

[Nebor]

this is very disgusting behavior on the part of the school, they should indeed be sued and she will ultimately get a free post-secondary education.

And by free, you mean the tax payers of that school district will fund it because some administrators are retards.

 

[LTC8K6]

http://blogs.chicagotribune.com/news_columnists_ezorn/2011/07/huge-scandal-brewing.html

^I agree with this guy. The mother's side, which is all we've heard, shows the lawsuit seems to be based on what she overheard in the copy room at school.

The school's side is sorely needed here.

If the allegations are true I hope the mother wins, the daughter wins, because being excluded because of skin color is absolutely barbaric.

Excluded? I thought it said co-valedictorian? That is, there would be 2, her and someone else.

Kinda' sounds like affirmative action...the school is about 50% black and 50% white, so we need one from each race to be fair...

 

[highland145]

Excluded? I thought it said co-valedictorian? That is, there would be 2, her and someone else.

Kinda' sounds like affirmative action...the school is about 50% black and 50% white, so we need one from each race to be fair...

What about the token Latino?

 

[Vette73]

Only thing I can think of is she was given extra time take test/class's because she got knocked up and they say that gave her a advantage over the other students.

But hard to say as we only have 1 side and people like to push their side really hard. Not sure what loses she can get, money wise, in court as it was not a paid position and hard to show it will have a negative impact on her in the long run.

 

[Nebor]

Only thing I can think of is she was given extra time take test/class's because she got knocked up and they say that gave her a advantage over the other students.

I didn't consider that. Black teenagers are far more likely to become pregnant than their white peers.

 

[moshquerade]

Excluded? I thought it said co-valedictorian? That is, there would be 2, her and someone else.

Kinda' sounds like affirmative action...the school is about 50% black and 50% white, so we need one from each race to be fair...

I said "excluded" because it is being presented that she is the top grade earner and therefore should be the only valedictorian. They are denying her that honor. There is no tie, and therefore the co-valedictorian idea is bs unless the school always chooses the top two.

but as said, i'd like to hear the school's side. we need the whole story.

 

[rivan]

What about the token Latino?

Or Latina. You sexist pig.

 

[tynopik]

I don't know why, you apply for colleges several months before graduating so it's not like you would know if you are valedictorian or not..

We knew who the valedictorians would be quite a while before graduating.

Of course it was only provisional and you could theoretically blow it . . .

 

[JS80]

Last time I checked Valedictorian=highest GPA. Hopefully school loses the suit, they took away that moment from her to address the graduating class. Same thing to the school board that made that stupid decision, they should be out of their job. They don't belong there.

My school had 3.

Retarded headline is retarded.

Does the school have a history of having just one valedictorian?

After reading all the facts, it's becoming less likely this had anything to do with race.

And lol @ 46% black = predominantly white.

 

[zinfamous]

What does loaded up mean? Can you quantify that?

say she takes 6 classes per semester/year.

I'd say loaded up means 6/6?

pretty easy.

when I was in school, though, Honors were one thing, AP was another. "Honors" already defined one level below AP...so maybe that was the problem? and by now, I figure the valedictorian at most schools would be spending most of their days taking college course at the local CC or University. It was already trending that way 10+ years ago.

It sound like BS on the surface, to me, but if all she did was take class and participated in absolutely no extra curriculars (meaning, the well-rounded student, because books simply aren't everything), and made such grades with a weaker load...then there's probably a legit argument.

I'm willing to bet there is much more to this, by simple virute of the fact that any thing remotely related to race, on the part of the school, would be far too idiotic these days. One would assume that a principal of a prep school is not that stupid.

 

[sactoking]

1. Does the school have clearly defined criteria for what it takes to be named valedictorian?
2. Did the school adhere to those criteria?
3. Is she, in fact, a teen mother? Where I went to school if you were a teen mother you were removed from the normal high schools and went to adult school since the schedule was flexible. There were kids who graduated with us that I hadn't seen since they got knocked up as freshmen. Those kids were not eligible to be valedictorian/salutatorian since they technically did not attend the high school.
4. If there is provable discrimination that is reprehensible.
5. If the lady in question succeeds in suing the school over a title, she is just as reprehensible as the administrators who committed the wrongdoing. She should be forced to look every kindergartener, first grader, and their parents in the eye and tell them "I'm taking money and compromising your education because I think that I, and a title I won't care about in 5 years, are more important than you."

 

[highland145]

Or Latina. You sexist pig.

More like ignorant but I'll take the sexy.