Rank: Valedictorian

Parents: Valerie and Dirk Dykstra

Grade average: 4.0

Future plans: Attend the University of South Alabama and double major in communications technology and business management and participate in the Army ROTC.

School activities/honors: Junior ROTC, Outstanding Cadet of the Year, Presidential Award, cheerleader, Webmaster group.

What will you remember best about high school: The challenges that have been placed in my path. The second semester of my junior year was the most trying for me. I was working around 25 hours a week at Sonic in Colorado City while I was attending high school and taking three extra college classes, one of which was the hardest class I had ever taken. I got two nights off a week on average and one of those was taken up by night college course. That was a hard experience but I really came to appreciate my family’s continued support.

What advice do you have for underclassmen: Never sell yourself short or settle because you can’t or don’t want to do more. Keep pushing and keep trying. I think the best way to state that is through my favorite quote: “You are what you do and you can do more than you think.”