The Mycenaean May 28, 2014
Leesville Road High School, Raleigh, N.C.
Volume XXI, Issue 4
Class of 2014 Senior Issue
Biswas redefines what it means to be valedictorian By: Lindsay Baker Staff Writer
For most, being named high school valedictorian might seem like the ultimate educational honor. While it is an honor, Sonali Biswas, senior, finds that the prestigious title simply ensures that she’s done her absolute best. “The title of valedictorian only means that I did well in some AP classes. I think people give it more importance than it deserves. Honestly, to me, it just means that I tried my best and that it worked out. I’ve worked the hardest I could possibly work,” said Biswas. Throughout her high school career, Biswas has successfully completed 14 AP classes. Some of these include AP Spanish and AP Statistics. The diversity of her class transcript only goes to show Biswas’s wide variety of interests. Although her favorite course was AP Spanish, Biswas admited, “I genuinely enjoyed every single class I was in because I felt like all of them were applicable to my life or to what I wanted to do.” Biswas’s motivation to take so many AP classes first stemmed from her multiple interests, as well as the environment AP classrooms provide. “What inspired me [to take AP classes] was I wanted to learn more about what I’m interested in, and I feel like in AP classes, you’re in this atmosphere where
everyone wants to learn and teachers are more relaxed and focused on you and having discussions instead of doing busywork. That’s what I wanted; I didn’t want to do busy work all the time,” said Biswas. With that said, Biswas currently has a cumulitivite GPA of 5.34, the highest Leesville Road High School has seen. When Biswas isn’t busy studying or doing her best in school, she enjoys indulging herself in the arts. “I really like playing piano...I really like knitting. That’s my guilty pleasure. I [also] really like to read, and I love drawing. Half my wall is a chalk board, so I just draw on that all the time. It’s really fun,” said Biswas. In order to keep a healthy balance between her schoolwork and her art-filled freetime, Biswas sticks to important advice: “You should never focus on the grade: you should always focus on the experience...Once I was able to just focus on learning the material, I felt like I learned a lot more. In life in general, I stopped focusing on the details of everything and actually saw the big picture. I realized that I
needed to calm down every once in a while. I felt a lot better.” This very insightful wisdom was first given to Biswas by Senor Ross, a teacher who feels very strongly about Biswas’s accomplishments and character in the classroom. “It has been an absolute pleasure to get to know Sonali. Her work ethic, her ability to excel in a myriad of activities and her caring nature are an inspiration to me,” said Ross. “She is comfortable with herself and is willing to share her skills and talents with others while simultaneously doing all that she can to bring out the best in others.” Cayla Culbreth, one of Biswas’s good friends, also thinks highly of her dedication to helping others: “She’s a really good listener. She’s really good at helping you with your problems. She always puts other people before herself.” Culbreth also enjoys how humble and down to earth Biswas is despite her title. “She’s funny, and she’s just really humble which is good because a lot of valedictorians are kind of snobby and they think they’re better than everyone, but she’s not like that,” said Coburth. In the fall, Biswas plans to attend Duke University. Although Duke wasn’t her first choice, Biswas is happy with her decision. “What’s really drawing me
“‘You should never focus on the grade: you should always focus on the experience...’”
“‘I’ve worked the hardest I could possibly work.’”
College: Duke University Favorite class: AP Spanish Favorite movie: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Favorite saying: “Stay hungry, stay foolish.” -Steve Jobs
to Duke is that it’s close to home and the atmosphere. They’re really supportive of all your passions, and they really want you to grow...It’s really a fantastic school.” At Duke, Biswas wants to take the “pre-med route” and complete all prerequisite classes, eventually going on to medical school. In addition, Biswas wants to continue pursuing her love of the Spanish language and liberal arts.
As for her legacy at Leesville, Biswas hopes people will remember her for her best qualities, like her friendly nature and love of education. “Sometimes there’s this idea that all valedictorians are in there just to get the grade and get out and go to a really good school. I hope I’m remembered for actually enjoying high school and having friends and being social and still being interested in learning, not grades,” said Biswas.
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--Dr. Mutillo
Cumulative GPA: 5.34
OFFICIAL SUPERLATIVE WINNERS
DR. MUTILLO’S PARTING WORDS
“‘Tear into your future.’”
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