Standridge, Smith lead BHS class

RHarvey@CarrollCoNews.com

Reaching and maintaining a spot at the top of a class requires sacrifices, including spending long hours studying. Just ask Berryville High School seniors Abigail Standridge and Jada Smith. “I have been invited to numerous parties or special occasions for friends, and I’ve had to turn them down because I’d have an AP exam, or a big test coming up, or an essay that was due,” said Standridge, the school’s valedictorian. “It’s definitely affected my social life a little bit. I’ve tried to have a good balance but it didn’t always work that way.”

Jada Smith, the BHS salutatorian, agreed.

“There were definitely times where I wanted to hang out but I would have homework or other stuff,” Smith said. “I did try to make sure there was a balance between fun and work.”

Standridge and Smith will address their class at graduation ceremonies at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 19, at Bobcat Stadium.

VALEDICTORIAN

Standridge said doing well in school was something she’s been able to accomplish for a number of years, being atop her class since ninth grade.

“My parents have always pushed for me to have straight A’s, or do as good as I can,” said Standridge, who finished with a 4.1 GPA.

So, when the official word came down that Standridge finished No. 1 in her class, she got mixed reactions from her parents, Andy and Valarie.

“My dad was like, ‘oh, of course, we saw that coming,’” Standridge said. “My mom was like in tears saying how proud she was of me. Just different reactions, but both so proud.”

Academics has always been a focal point in her family, Standridge said.

“My older brother had straight A’s throughout high school as well and I think my mom did, too,” she said. “… I’m sure my dad did, too.”

Standridge said she can “thank teachers all day, every day,” for helping her achieve her goal of being valedictorian, specifically mentioning the guidance of teachers Tiffany Smith, Kendra Turner and Matthew Sayer.

“They’re always there to help,” Standridge said. “Ms. Smith, she’s the reason I got through math these last couple of years. Mr. Sayer and Ms. Turner, she’s helped me out a lot academically with writing and stuff. I don’t know if I would have passed my AP language exam without her.”

Building good rapport with her teachers was a benefit to attending a smaller high school, Standridge said.

“Everybody knows everybody,” she said. “Having smaller classes has helped me in the classroom. You feel more comfortable asking questions when you’re confused.”

Standridge, who played flute and piccolo in the BHS band and was president of the school’s National Honor Society, said she will attend Missouri State University in Springfield in the fall with a focus on occupational therapy. While she’ll be nervous, she is looking forward to addressing her class on Sunday.

“I hope they take away to remember your goals,” she said. “I wanted to be valedictorian so bad, or at least have straight A’s, and I worked so hard for it that I neglected my social life. I never really went out and didn’t really get that high school experience of going out and hanging out with your friends all the time.

“I just hope takes away, that you can take a break from your goals to go have fun and go experience the world.”

SALUTATORIAN

Smith, who has been friends with Standridge since elementary school, finished with a 4.0769 GPA to claim salutatorian honors.

“My parents (Jeff and Robbye) were very proud of me,” Smith said. “My mom and dad have always tried to make sure I had good grades.

“They never tried to stress me too much, but they knew what I was capable of getting good grades. They just reinforced that.”

The mindset helped her juggle assignments and extracurricular activities, Smith said. As a member of the BHS band, she played French horn during concert season and was a color guard captain during marching season. In addition, she was on the school’s Quiz Bowl team, served on the student council and was vice president of NHS.

“I remember this past year we literally came back from a band competition and I had a test in college algebra the next morning,” she said. “I made sure I had fun that night, but then stayed up really late to work and study for the test the next morning. It was hard to find a balance but I tried to.”

Smith also credited Turner along with band teacher Tonya Blevins for being big influences.

“I looked up to Ms. Turner and Ms. Blevins in band helped me so much in growing as a person, leadership, trying to build my character.”

Having a friend like Standridge to study with helped too, Smith said.

“We’ve worked on schoolwork together for a long time,” she said. “We’ve been in some of the same classes together since sixth grade. We’ve helped each other with math … We’ve always been studying together. We’ve also taken a lot of pictures together this year and have had fun getting awards together.”

Plans this fall are to attend Harding University in Searcy and major in biology, Smith said.

“I’m going to go through their pre-med program because I’m wanting to work in pediatrics in the future,” she said.