<p>My daughter's high school supposedly has no ranks, and it does not have a valedictorian. But at the awards ceremony last week, the kids in the top 5% of the senior class got their names called and got certificates issued by the state. I think it was done by weighted GPA (on the grounds that my daughter got a certificate, and I don't think she would have if the ranks were unweighted), but nobody knows for sure.</p>
<p>Like doubleplay says, go figure.</p>