The Aiken County Public School District honored some of its highest achieving graduating seniors Thursday.
Sixty-six seniors from the district's seven high schools received the first Senior Scholar medallion during a banquet in the Palmetto Terrace at the North Augusta Municipal Building.
The new award recognizes academic excellence and achievement, said Alvin Pressley, the district's executive director of high schools.
To qualify as a Senior Scholar and receive a medallion, students had to rank in the top 10 percent of their class and have a minimum 3.75 grade-point average or higher, he said. Students also must have had no grade lower than a B for every quarter of their high school careers.
“We wanted to do a district-level celebration to honor the academic achievement of a select group of students,” Pressley said. “We wanted it to be a very big event, giving the students some guidance as they take the next steps in their academic careers and just celebrate all that they've done up to this point. We look forward to it getting bigger and better each year.”
Reece Berry, who will graduate from Aiken High with a 4.0 grade-point average, said he didn't know “they recognized people just for getting straight As."
“It was unexpected and a surprise,” he said. “Feels good.”
Alicia Key, the valedictorian of Ridge Spring-Monetta High School's class of 2017 and now a student at Furman University, gave the keynote address.
To end the night, Superintendent Dr. Sean Alford told the inaugural class or Senior Scholars their achievement is not about their grade-point average but about consistency.
“This is about a young person who cares to put forth his or her very best over an extended period of time,” he said. "That's the secret of success: to care enough to put forth your very best over an extended period of time no matter how rough it gets, no matter how dark the days become.
“You are about to embark upon a wonderful journey, but you are well-prepared. Represent us well wherever you go. We love you. The door is always open for you in Aiken County. Come back and tell us how well you've done and all the wonderful things you can help guide someone else to in their future years.”
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PHOTO CREDIT: CINDY KUBOVIC/AIKEN STANDARD