Forty-one seniors at J.Z. George High School will celebrate the end of their high school careers during a graduation ceremony Friday beginning at 7 p.m. at the school.
McKenzie Henson is the class valedictorian, and Samantha Ortega is the salutatorian. Their GPAs have yet to be calculated.
In high school, Henson, 18, played trumpet in the band and participated in the 4-H leadership program and Beta Club.
She plans to attend Mississippi State University, where she’ll major in zoology, and then attend MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
Henson said her favorite memories in high school included going on band trips, attending football games and “just being around my friends.”
What she’ll miss most about high school, she said, is “the routine of being able to see my friends every day.”
Ortega, 17, plans to attend Mississippi Delta Community College in Moorhead to study pre-health professions or pre-veterinary medicine. She also intends to study at MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
In high school she participated in Beta Club and the 4-H leadership program and worked part time at La Cueva, a Mexican restaurant in North Carrollton.
“I think my favorite memories were hanging out with my friends outside of school or getting to participate in homecoming with my best friend,” Ortega said.
During her junior year, Ortega and her friend were selected as homecoming maids. Ortega was again selected during her senior year.
“We were a really close class. We all got along well,” she said. “The only thing I’ll miss about my high school is my classmates and teachers.”
- Contact Gerard Edic at 581-7239 or gedic@gwcommonwealth.com.
