A valedictorian is normally a person with good leadership skills. He or she acts as a role model to their peers due to their outstanding grades from their hard work and dedication. They are the people who demonstrate the importance of setting goals and striving for excellence. Traditionally, the valedictorian gives a farewell speech at graduation. However, at Chelsea High School, valedictorians are not allowed to give a speech to their class at graduation. We don’t even mention the valedictorian at graduation at all.

Senior Jordan Nelson, a post-student council president, believes the history of the valedictorian speech in Chelsea shapes the way we do things now.

“In the early 20th century, as the Chelsea school district got started, it was a big deal to honor academic achievements because there was not much time and resources allocated for stuff outside the classroom. As we shifted into the model, the bigger emphasis is now outside of the classroom, and we’ve lost sight of academic competition,” Nelson said.

Many opinions were thrown around when the topic was about whether the valedictorian speech would impact the graduation, and if it would be a good idea to have them speak. 

“It’s honestly kind of odd not having a valedictorian speak at Chelsea when most of the schools around us have them speak at graduation. But we often run into unique people falling into that valedictorian position, because sometimes they might not be very relevant to people outside of regular coursework. They might bring a very insightful perspective that propelled them to that position. I think it would be just another platform to recognize the efforts of CHS students,” Nelson said.

Due to Chelsea High School not having a valedictorian make a speech at the graduation, no one knew what kinds of topics they would cover at the ceremony. 

“I’m not sure what they would cover but I would expect them to talk about academic competition and the importance of applying themselves in the classroom and not giving up,” Nelson said.