The highest achievement a students can obtain, academically, is the title of being Valedictorian or Salutatorian. These titles are given to the top two students in the Senior class, decided by the cumulative amount of quality points they’ve earned throughout their high school careers. Students have worked endlessly since Freshman year to be in the running for these prestigious titles. For the class of 2018 the winners weren’t much of a surprise. Valedictorian Malia Guerrero and Salutatorian Brandon Loi, can finally put their hardwork and dedication to rest. Brandon Loi says, “It took a ton of work to get here, but it was honestly worth it.”
Malia Guerrero has been attending Saint Francis School since 6th grade. The dream of being Valedictorian wasn’t always at the top of Malia’s list. Growing up Malia had a rough time academically. Many told her that she wouldn’t make it far when it came to school. But, Malia has proven all of them wrong. She used that doubt as her motivation to become one of the best students Saint Francis has ever seen, averaging a 4.2 GPA. She says, “It was hard at the time, but I used it as motivation to work harder.” Describing becoming Valedictoruan she says, “I was honestly surprised when I found out, it was an accomplishment I’ve always strived to obtain.”
From Malia’s story, we’re able to see that even if people doubt you can always prove them wrong. Through hard work and adversity, you’ll always have the opportunity to come out on top.
Malia will be continuing her education at Pacific University, she will be double majoring in Education and Government and Politics with a minor in Communications.
Brandon Loi never thought that being Salutatorian was ever going to be a possibility. He’s been here since 7th grade all the years since, Brandon has worked hard to keep his grades up to par. He says, “I’ve always just done my work and tried my best. It wasn’t really much.” With a 4.1 GPA, Brandon will be continuing his education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and will be majoring in Biochemistry.
