Board of Education Congratulates 2008 WCPSS Valedictorians
May 2, 2008 - Wake County Board of Education members held a luncheon to honor the 21 Wake County Public School System 2008 valedictorians. Board members, Superintendent Del Burns and school administrators met with the students at the NC State University Faculty Club.
Each high school with a senior class had at least one student named valedictorian this year. Holly Springs and Panther Creek high schools will have first graduating classes and first valedictorians next year.
2008 ValedictoriansFavorite teachersOffer adviceAccomplishmentsPhotographs |
Listen to four WCPSS Valedictorians talk about their school careers 4 minute mp3 file |
Sixteen of the students plan to attend North Carolina universities with seven going to UNC-Chapel Hill, four bound for Duke and two for NC State University. One each will go to Meredith College, East Carolina University and Appalachian State University.
Five are headed to out-of-state schools: Yale, Purdue, Texas A&M, New York University and South Carolina. Nine indicated interest in medicine, two want to be involved in the sports business, and one wants to be an astronaut. The students' career interests include broadcasting, engineering and academia.
The students had fond words for teachers who they remembered as caring and challenging.
Joshua Grizzard of the East Wake School of Engineering Systems remembered his fourth-grade teacher at Carver Elementary, Mrs. Hicks. "She challenged me to not settle for being average," said Grizzard who is headed to Yale to play football.
Sara Moore of Wake Forest-Rolesville High said her AP Psychology teacher Elizabeth McDonough was her favorite teacher. "She is one of those rare teachers who is inspiring, helps students connect to the material and is still incredibly caring and fun," said Moore.
Susan Chen of Knightdale High moved to Wake County from China when she was seven and remembered the teachers who helped her learn a new language and culture. Her favorite teacher was Gayle Alford. "Although there were times when Mrs. Alford had a great deal of work, she always took the time out to help me with my English," said Chen. "She was the first teacher that not only cared about my schoolwork, but also took the time out to learn about my family."
When asked about accomplishments, several pointed to services they had offered others. Jessie Powell worked through the Key Club to help with events for young children. Others served through leadership: Matthew Fox as Student Body President and Jamie Byrd as president of the National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society. Timothy Ryan Palpant and Jeeho Kim were proud of attending Governor's School. Vivek Bhattacharya helped to start a math competition for middle school students that's run by high school students. "It gives middle schoolers interested in math and science the opportunity to talk to high schoolers who share their interests," said Bhattacharya.
The students had advice for high school students encouraging them to plan ahead and work hard.
"Early on in your high school career, get help mapping out the courses you will need to take for the whole four years," said Rebecca Millberg. "From that point on, take it day by day. If you try to give 100 percent every day, the end result will be your best."
"The best advice I can give on a general basis is to spend your early high school years trying to find out what you actually like to learn," said Jessie Powell. "Then, use the rest of high school to work on higher level classes in those subjects."
"For me, it was all about self-discipline," said Elizabeth Boyette. "Time management is a major factor because doing things at the last minute won't help you learn the material."
The students had a wide variety of interests, listing among their favorite things geocaching, playing guitar and piano, listening to music, watching movies, dancing, rubik's cube, participating in church youth group, playing tennis, watching sports, fishing, hunting and spending time with family and friends.
The students' favorite books include To Kill a Mockingbird, 1984, Pride and Prejudice, Absalom, Absalom, Slaughterhouse Five, Catch 22, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, The Fountainhead, I May Be Wrong, But I Doubt It, and Ana's Story.
The students were concerned about their immediate challenge of entering college and concerned about the future that lays ahead.
"We must face what is going to happen economically and financially, but I think more importantly, environmentally," said Amanda Driver. "We have to become more conscious of what is happing to the world and how we are going to help it and elect leaders that are going to make caring for the environment an issue."
"The total number of U.S. high school graduates this year is the largest since the 1960s, and will continue to be the largest for another 15 years," said Eason Lee. "Therefore, what defining impact will our class make on the future?"
"We must work to maintain a sense of community by improving the lives of our fellow human beings and animals with kind words and kind actions," said Alana Bossen.
"The lack of students genuinely interested in math and science is something we need to rectify," said Vivek Bhattacharya. "These subjects are unfairly portrayed in modern culture. However, they often take a backseat to sports and arts and even the humanities. If we want to be competitive, we need to eradicate the notion that math and science are 'geeky' or 'useless' or even 'too hard.'"
Superintendent Burns led a discussion with the students about their plans. He congratulated them for their hard work to earn valedictorian and the success they are sure to enjoy in the future.
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Valedictorians
|
School |
Valedictorian |
University |
|
Apex High |
Krystian Kozek |
NC State University |
|
Athens Drive High |
Kyle Nicholas Goodman |
NC State University |
|
Broughton High |
Matthew Fox |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
|
Cary High |
Roland Michael Larino |
Texas A & M |
|
East Wake High School of Arts, Education and Global Studies |
Amanda Driver |
Appalachian State |
East Wake School of Engineering Systems |
Joshua Grizzard |
Yale University |
East Wake School of Health Science |
Rebecca Millberg |
East Carolina University |
|
East Wake School of Integrated Technology |
Jamie Byrd |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
|
Enloe High |
Vivek Bhattacharya |
Duke University |
| Fuquay-Varina High |
Hai Wang Zheng |
Duke University |
|
Garner High |
Elizabeth Boyette |
Meredith College |
|
Green Hope High |
Eason Lee |
Duke University |
Green Hope High |
Jessica Powell |
Purdue |
|
Knightdale High |
Wenjun Chen |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
|
Leesville Road High |
Timothy Ryan Palpant |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
|
Middle Creek High |
Alana Julia Bossen |
Duke University |
|
Millbrook High |
Emma Fauser |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
|
Sanderson High |
Jeeho Kim |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
Southeast Raleigh High |
Michael Wright |
UNC-Chapel Hill |
|
Wake Forest Rolesville High |
Sara Moore |
South Carolina |
|
Wakefield High |
Adit Shukla |
New York University |
Favorite teachers
|
Michael Wright |
My favorite teacher is Ms. Kathy Price. She was an extremely energetic English teacher I had in ninth grade that really made class interesting. |
|
Sara Taylor Moore |
My favorite teacher is Mrs. Elizabeth McDonough who teaches Honors and Advanced Placement Psychology. She is one of those rare teachers who is inspiring, helps students connect to the material and is still incredibly caring and fun. |
|
Alana Julia Bossen |
It's a toss up between Mr. West, my Advanced Placement Environmental Sciences and Advanced Placement Biology teacher and Ms. Darling, my Advanced Placement Language teacher. Both have had a huge impact on me as a person - Mr. West, with his high standards and dry humor, nurtured my enthusiasm for biology and Ms. Darling taught me to "read carefully, think critically and write clearly." |
|
Haiwang Zheng |
My favorite teacher is Patricia Cotton. She has been my teacher through five semesters worth of Spanish. Mrs. Cotton is flexible yet strict and her classes have been one of the most informative classes that I have learned a great wealth of knowledge from. |
|
Vivek Bhattacharya |
My favorite teacher is Mr. John Noland. He is extremely intelligent and very helpful, but he nevertheless is humble about his abilities and treats all students with exactly equal respect. I have learned a lot from him - both inside and outside the classroom - over the past four years. |
|
Joshua Grizzard |
My favorite teacher was Mrs. Hicks at Carver Elementary. She challenged me to not settle for being average. |
| Wenjun Chen | My favorite teacher is Mrs. Gayle Alford. Although there were times when Mrs. Alford had a great deal of work, she always took the time out to help me with my English. She was the first teacher that not only cared about my schoolwork, but also took the time out to learn about my family. |
| Emma Fauser | My Spanish teacher, Mrs. Ventura, was one of my favorites because she was fun and understanding. She knew how to relate to students and was fair. She engaged the class with her fun projects and optimistic attitude. My calculus teacher, Mrs. Duncan is also one of my favorites as well as my 7th grade social studies teacher, Mr. Kaplack. I will probably remember most all of my teachers though because they are all important to me and I would not be the person I am today without them. |
| Kyle Goodman | Ms. Hill was my favorite teacher because of how well she taught Calculus and prepared us for high-level math classes. |
Advice
|
Timothy Ryan Palpant |
Don't cut corners: the opportunity will always be there, but you owe it to yourself to genuinely excel by working hard. It pays. |
|
Krystian Kozek |
I strongly advise students to never give up trying their hardest no matter what type of obstacles are in their paths because even the most difficult obstacle can be overcome. |
|
Rebecca Millberg |
Early on in your high school career, get help mapping out the courses you will need to take for the whole four years. From that point on, take it day by day. If you try to give 100 percent every day, the end result will be your best. |
| Jamie Byrd |
The advice I can give those who are seeking to excel scholastically is to stay focused. Sometimes having three AP classes, being involved in four clubs and having a job may seem a bit overwhelming, but in the end it will all work out and be worth it. Just remember that it is all for your future and no matter how mundane it may seem at times, everything you do in school has a purpose. |
| Joshua Grizzard |
Do not procrastinate, respect your teachers, be disciplined, prioritize and start off high school strong. |
| Elizabeth Boyette |
To excel one has to be willing to give up many things. For me, it was all about self-discipline. Time management is a major factor because doing things at the last minute won't help you learn the material. |
| Adit Shukla |
My advice is to extend oneself far beyond one's reach. Whether it is academics or something else, we ultimately deny ourselves of life when we stay in our comfort zone. |
| Jessie Powell |
The best advice I can give on a general basis is to spend your early high school years trying to find out what you actually like to learn. Then, use the rest of high school to work on higher level classes in those subjects. |
Accomplishments
|
Eason Lee |
I am most proud of playing top six on the Green Hope Varsity tennis team because it means I have equally balanced my academics with athletics. |
|
Matthew Fox |
I am most proud of being elected Student Body President at Broughton because it has been a great honor to serve my classmates in a leadership capacity. |
|
Roland Michael Larino |
I am most proud of being the only high school student selected to serve as a volunteer intern in the NC Senate for Senator Richard Stevens the summer before my junior year. I learned a great deal about how our government works and it inspired me to expand my studies into history and government. |
|
Jeeho Kim |
I am most proud of attending Governor's School West for Mathematics in 2007. Attending Governor's School enabled me, personally, to be more independent and more passionate about learning and sharing knowledge for the sake of knowledge and for the sake of service to mankind. |
| Vivek Bhattacharya |
Starting the National Enloe Mathematical Olympiad - a math competition for middle school students run completely by high school students. It also allows middle schoolers interested in math and science to talk to high schoolers who share their same interests. |
| Wenjun Chen |
The accomplishment that I am most proud of is always taking the step to challenge myself not only mentally, but also socially. My family moved to the US from China when I was seven years old. Not only did I have trouble learning the new language, but also making friends. But through all these years of hard work, I have been able to overcome these challenges. |
| Amanda Driver | I am proud of the commitment for four years to my high school marching band because the people that I got to know became some of my best friends and the things that we have accomplished as a group go far beyond just high school and band. |
2008 Valedictorians
 Krystian Kozek Apex HS |
 Kyle Nicholas Goodman Athens Drive HS |
 Matthew Fox Broughton HS |
 Roland Michael Larino Cary HS |
 Amanda Driver East Wake School of Arts, Education and Global Studies |
 Joshua Grizzard East Wake School of Engineering System |
 Rebecca Millberg East Wake School of Health Science |
 Jamie Byrd East Wake School of Integrated Technology |
 Vivek Bhattacharya Enloe HS |
 Hai Wang Zheng Fuquay-Varina HS |
 Elizabeth Boyette Garner HS |
 Eason Lee Green Hope HS |
 Jessica Powell Green Hope HS |
 Wenjun Chen Knightdale HS |
 Timothy Ryan Palpant Leesville Road HS |
|
|
 Jee Ho Kim Sanderson HS |
 Michael Wright Southeast Raleigh HS |
 Sara Moore Wake Forest-Rolesville HS |
 Adit Shukla Wakefield HS |
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