Kind of OT but this phenomenon drives me nuts. IMO, the implication is that the loss of a kid with “lesser” credentials, say a kid with a B- average who has to work a fast food job after school is not nearly as tragic as the loss of an A student who is a member of NHS.
I was a member of NHS back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and by no means, then or now, were all of them “really good kids”. Some of the NHS kids at my kids’ schools were well-known weekend partiers and some were simply not good people in spite of having academic achievements. Astonishing, I know.