I stopped reading this article before I even got to the first sentence. The caption under the photo caught my attention when I read that this particular high school graduated 13 valedictorians this year. After doing some research, I learned that this is actually a growing trend in the US (one school in Florida actually has 18 valedictorians for 2009). Every definition I could find describes the valedictorian as a singular person who ranks first in their class and gives a commencement speech. Schools are now honoring anyone who receives straight A's in all four years with the title of "valedictorian." (Which also means a few minutes behind the mic for each) So maybe this is part of the problem. Giving all these seniors false hope that they are "the best" might actually set them up for failure when Harvard and Yale turn down their scholarship applications. #1 doesn't really mean that much when you're tied with over a dozen other people.
