<p>what is the basis of choosing a valedectorian?</p>
<p>is it always the number one ranked person?</p>
<p>if there are any valedectorians, what were your stats?</p>
<p>GPA.</p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>Sisters had 4.0 and 3.9 UW GPAs.</p>
<p>My school's valedictorian had 4.6~ weighted.</p>
<p>Yeah, it's the number 1 ranked person. </p>
<p>The situation gets messy with (UW) because of multiple val situation. (Read about Blair Hornstein if you're curious.) </p>
<p>Some schools have a weighted system to figure out the val. </p>
<p>Some schools have students vote for the val. </p>
<p>In short, ask your GC.</p>
<p>"Some schools have students vote for the val."</p>
<p>That's extremely funny. It's like getting voted for "Most likely to Succeed," which usually ends up with some popular kid that's slightly smarter than the rest of the popular kids.</p>
<p>Either our Most Likely to Succeed or Know It All usually include the valedictorian.</p>
<p>In my school it's done by weighted GPA.</p>
<p>wow, so extra curricular/sat doest even matter? ugh................</p>
<p>a lot of schools have people vote for vals</p>
<p>and also, if i have done some courses outside school and online, would that be integrated into my gpa?</p>
<p>Nope, ECs and SATs don't matter, just GPA. Schools usually do it by weighted GPA or it wouldn't be fair to the people who take AP classes (college level work) and get an A-, while others ace the easiest classes possible.</p>
<p>So, in short, valedictorian is the #1 ranked weighted GPA and salututorian is the #2.</p>
<p>My sister graduated valedictorian with 8 AP classes, A's on everything except for like an A- for health or Bible or something.</p>
<p>do you guys think that is fair? jus based on gpa..</p>
<p>and also, if you take courses outside the school, does that count?</p>
<p>Our school does it differently...</p>
<p>The valedictorian is chosen based on a submitted application evaluated by the administration and the guidance department. They take into account grades AND EC's. There is also an interview where you have to answer some questions and give a speech. </p>
<p>The valedictorian isn't always the <em>top</em> academic person, as we are an IB school and have a lot of very smart, introverted sciencey kids who definetly are not interested in giving a big speech at grad infront of our 650+ graduating class AND their parents. However, to my knowledge, the majority of valedictorians have been in the top 1-3% (top 20 students-ish out of 650 probably). </p>
<p>We don't find out who the valedictorian is until May... so I will let you know my stats then if I get it. I'm going to apply, so we'll see.</p>
<p>Our school it's based on unweighted GPA. There's usually like one person that takes really really easy classes and gets a 4.0--> becomes valedictorian.</p>
<p>Our valedictorian is the person who is ranked first, but the person who speaks at the graduation ceremony is the person who gets the most votes from students/staff. Last year, our 4th or 6th rank person gave the graduation address.</p>
<p>Yeah, in our school the valedictorian doesn't get to speak. The senior class president does.
So basically the speech goes like this: Thank you to the school, staff, parents...this school has been so wonderful, we've had so many memories!! And then she cries.
Ugh, well that's going to change soon..the valedictorian might be able to give a speech as well, by the time I graduate.</p>
<p>At our school, anyone with above a 4.0 weighted is "valedictorian."</p>
<p>Yeah--our school gives the valedictorian the choice if they want to make a speech or not. It is definitely fair to base it off grades. How could they pick over ECs?</p>
<p>This is the dictionary definition:
The student with the highest academic rank in a class who delivers the valedictory at graduation.</p>
<p>Let me break it down for you: At my school, Valedictorian is based on one thing, and one thing only: GPA!! Basically, if you have the highest overall GPA of your class, you're valedictorian. </p>
<p>SPECIAL NOTE:
AP Courses = Same value as Honor Courses
AP/Honor Courses are +1 point than Regular courses.</p>
<p>Easy right? Just a couple of easy courses with honors/ap credit in high school, and boom, --I'm Val! Wrong...</p>
<p>Usually, Valedictorian's take about 5-8 AP/Honor Courses during EACH summer break, ...and this after finishing the additional 6 maximum courses during their Freshman, Sophmore or Junior year! That is both EXPENSIVE and CRAZY! </p>
<p>During the graduating year:
A regular student with no honors/ap has about graduates with about 22 regular courses (non-honor/ap courses)..and 2 courses/credits of gym (which for some reason aren't averaged into our gpa)...and 0 courses during the summer.</p>
<p>A valedictorian has about 20 honor/ap courses and 2 regular courses during their high school years, 2 mandatory years of gym, about and about an additional 24 honor/ap courses during the summer which are toppled all together to give them a nearly perfected GPA of 5.0.</p>
<p>I think that it SHOULD be based on Academics, because just about anyone can manage EC's. Val's really go out of their way. I have to agree it's well worth the money too, because scholarship value over here are extremly $$$ blinged-out $$$ :-D.</p>
<p>What do you think?</p>
<p>at my school, the val. is chosen based on nothing but GPA, and we aren't weighted...as the class of '06 val at my school, it really annoys me that I work my tail off in the honors classes while the two guys who are 2 and 3 just coasted by in regular....and like someone else mentioned, Most Likely to Succeed has for the last several years <em>always</em> included the val. and sometimes the sal., too, if they are a mixed gender pair.<br>
Val. gives a speech at graduation here, too, and if anyone has ideas about how to write said speech, I would love some help bc I think I am definitely going to be stuck giving it, and it is too much to say that I have even an idea of how to start :D</p>
<p>my school doesn't even call it valedictorian and salutatorian, just ranked #1 and #2...i would have liked the title :/</p>
<p>Elecktrified, that's insane, so I'm guessing you only have 1 valedictorian since it's so cut throat like that?</p>
<p>In my school, there are a few Honors classes but they dont' count extra, basically you are put into them if you're considered "gifted" enough or if you request them, I suppose to look good on the transcript. Only AP classes give you extra points on your GPA. </p>
<p>So the valedictorian is the kid with all As in all the mandatory classes and all As in the 8 AP classes offered in my school. </p>
<p>But there are Governor's School classes also offered, in a few subjects, like Anatomy & Physiology, Advanced Statistics, Advanced Physics, Multivariate Calculus, Robotics, etc etc. . . and if you take one, it will replace only 1 of the APs. So the valedictorian could take 7 APs and only 1 of those to replace an AP s/he didn't want to take. . . . </p>
<p>The governor's school classes arent exactly easy either, it's actually on a college schedule, so like I'm taking one this year, and even though my school vacation was from Dec.21-Jan.3, the governor's school class' break is from Dec.9-Jan.19 . . . which is really really long, I guess it's like a college break. And it's really cool too, like it's completely thru the internet, with headphones to listen to the teacher, and the instructor can give other students the "floor" when they want to talk, and like if you're in physics and have to do a math problem, you use your mouse and the tools to "draw it out", pretty neat stuff</p>
<p>But you know how some of you mentioned that the val doesn't necessarily have a speech..well that wouldn't be all that bad cuz there are actually kids who won't become val just so they dont have to give a speech, and some dont WANT to give a speech, like to some kids, it's a forced upon thing, not a "YAY IM NUMERO UNO, I GET TO TALK IN FRONT OF EVERYONE" but "damn, do i have to say it"..</p>
<p>OH yeah, also, this is pretty interesting, the valedictorians GPAs are calculated by the end of the year, so like since college apps need to be sent by about Jan 1, some of the vals at the end of the year actually cant put #1 on the application. Instead, the #1 spot AT THE TIME goes to the one who already has all As for the MOST APs in their previous years...and by the end of the year, all the vals, even though some may have not been considered "val" from the beginning will give a speech, and I think if there are too many (like this year there will be 5 by the end of the year) then the saludictorian will not say a speech ;(</p>
<p>so, to be the only val ever, and not have to share it with anyone else for your college application, you have to take the most APs your soph & junior year.</p>
<p>sorry that was soo long, this topic gets discussed a lot around here, its a small school so people are constantly worrying. and sorry if the color bothers anyone, i just felt like using it..</p>