An African-American teenage mother, Kymberly Wimberley, earned the highest GPA in her class at Arkansas' McGehee School District, but a lawsuit filed by the student this month alleges that her district discriminated against her and made her share the honor with a white student - because she is a teenage mother. The law suit about this issue states, “The school's administrators were afraid of a "big mess" if was Kymberly was recognized as the top of her class, so the school appointed a white student with a lower GPA to be "co-valedictorian." The story also continues with the following: “Some say teen mothers are expected to fail, but Kymberly Wimberley defied both the odds and the stereotypes. She went back to school a few short weeks after having a child, and worked endlessly hard to achieve high grades in advanced placement classes - courses often considered too difficult for even bright students. Kymberly is a committed scholar and she excelled beyond her peers. Without faltering or failing, she achieved high scores. She did not just graduate: she graduated with honors. This is categorically unfair because teen parents and African American ones at that are routinely discriminated against and face significant institutional barriers to education.”
What has been cited may be true however; I believe there are two sides to every story. I wanted to learn more, so I researched what it means to be a valedictorian. According to Wikipedia, a Valedictorian is an academic title conferred upon the highest ranked student among those graduating from an educational institution. How an individual school confers the title is typically based upon the highest grade point average. Generally, the graduate deemed to be the highest academically ranked student in the class, as determined by the academic criteria of the school, is given the title of class valedictorian. They must be the best representative of the graduating class. Some institutions confer the title on the class member chosen to deliver the final graduation address, regardless of the speaker's academic credentials.
Historically and traditionally, however, schools confer the title upon the top ranking graduate of the class, who thereby earns the honor of delivering the valedictory address. Some institutions award the title based upon various criteria such as overall academic record of grades and credits, a student's grade point average, the level of rigor within a student's academic program of studies, a vote by school administrators, the level of participation in and dedication to extracurricular activities, and one's public-speaking skills and abilities. In other schools, the position may be elected by the school body or appointed directly by the school administration based on various systems of merit. Some schools may feature "co-valedictorians" in lieu of conferring the title on a single individual from among the graduating class. This may occur in the case of a numerical tie in grade point averages, as part of a Latin honors system, or to promote a form of affirmative action such as gender or racial balance.
After reading the information supplied by Wikipedia, I believe the school acted within its right to elect a co-valedictorian even if the person has a lower GPA, because no matter how academically gifted Kymberly is, she isn’t the best representative of her graduating class and school by her choice to become a teen mother. Some people may want to make this a racial issue, however, till there's a list of all schools that have allowed teen Caucasian mothers to be valedictorians, I will not believe that.
I'm sure Kymberly is a great person and I applaud her for not terminating the pregnancy, having the child, and having such good grades which is inspirational, however a teen mother shouldn’t be the sole valedictorian. I don't believe many parents would like their children to be addressed by a teen mom as the "best representative of the graduating class," while subtly receiving the message that a teen mom is the ideal profile of a high school student. Just like MTV's Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant that glamorize teen pregnancy on TV screens around the country, having a teen mother as the sole valedictorian will send the wrong message that it's ok to be a teen mother when it is not. This in no way means she's a bad person or her academic brilliance is being ignored. That's why she was not stripped of the honor. Someone else was just added as a co-valedictorian. This will help present two models to the graduating class showing that you can have challenges, persevere
and still accomplish your goals like Kymberly did, while the other person models not having such challenges.
Ideally, a valedictorian should be a graduating student without reproach. A person of integrity other students should strive to emulate. Academic brilliance and a high GPA are both good, but aren't everything. Making good choices that speaks to all round wholesomeness is what makes a good valedictorian and Kymberly has made a wrong choice that resulted in her becoming a teen mother, therefore the school is right in their decision that she shouldn’t be the sole valedictorian. She can and has sued the school, which is America’s resolution to everything, and as we know, the side who wins the case is based on how well their attorneys do their jobs, however, in life, there are so many other battles that lay ahead of her as a single mother. I sincerely wish her the best in her future endeavors.
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