When Lumpkin County High School’s Amelia Langston and Ethan Fox each crossed the stage and received their diplomas during Saturday’s graduation ceremony, they did so knowing they were closing a chapter of their lives filled with memories.
“Four years is hard to pack into a couple of moments,” Langston said. ”Some of it will just be the little things and a bunch of it will be the people and friends that I’ve spent so many different memories and moments with.”
They also did so as the school’s valedictorian and salutatorian.
For Langston, earning the title of valedictorian has been something in the making for quite a while.
“I’ve been valedictorian of my class since eighth grade so it’s kind of just stayed that way,” Langston said.
While for Fox, being named salutatorian came as a bit of a surprise.
“When I found out I was going to be salutatorian, I was really excited and delighted,” Fox said. ”I put a lot of work into my grades and academics, so it was nice for the recognition, but immediately after that, I was afraid of losing the second spot. I'm an anxious person so I stressed about it a lot.”
With both now finished with this stage in their lives, The Nugget reached out to the Class of 2021’s top two students to talk about the achievement, memories and the future.
AMELIA LANGSTON
Langston earned the honor of valedictorian as a result of her driven and determined personality and a commitment to hard work, which she said she gets from her parents.
“Whatever I do, I put in my all and I do the work and it just pays off I guess,” she said.
Throughout high school, Langston managed to keep her grades at the top of her class despite being quite busy.
“I’ve been really involved in FBLA, which is Future Business Leaders of America, all throughout high school and even served as a state officer,” she said. “I served on student council all four years as well. I was involved in dance for the first three years of high school and before that too.”
Her time in FBLA allowed her to create a special bond with business teacher Amy Lincoln.
“She’s definitely the teacher that’s had the biggest impact on me,” she said.
Now, Langston looks forward to continuing her hard work academically at the University of Georgia, where she will start next spring majoring in early childhood education.
As for the future, teaching elementary schoolers is something Langston has wanted to do since she was in elementary school herself.
“I kind of decided that in kindergarten,” she said. “I was sitting on the rainbow rug just looking up at my teacher, Mrs. [Caroline] Stewart. I guess I just wasn’t paying attention to what she was saying. I was just thinking ‘What do I want to be when I grow up?’ I was like ‘Ok, I’ll be a teacher’ and I’ve stuck with it somehow.”
ETHAN FOX
For Fox, the memories that mean the most from his time at LCHS will likely be those spent with his bandmates as a member of the Band of Gold.
“For the most memorable events of high school, I think I'll find the memories from all the marching band and concert band experiences to be amazing and something worth remembering,” Fox said. “Getting to hang out with friends while playing music I love has been really, really fun. I hope I can continue playing music in college and beyond.”
That’s where Fox also met the teacher he said influenced him the most during his time at Lumpkin, although that bond didn’t fully develop in the band room alone.
“My favorite class in high school was probably a computer science class I took with Joe Covert in my Junior year,” he said. “Dr. Covert works with the school band I'm in, but it was really nice to finally have a class with him. He's been an invaluable friend and mentor, and he's someone I can go to for any help. A lot of my friends and I would go to his classroom during lunch and have lunch there to study and just to talk. He's a very intelligent and thoughtful person, and I'm so glad I got to take a few classes with him and have his guidance. I really hope I can keep in touch with him after high school.”
Fox looks forward to continuing his education at the Georgia Institute of Technology where he plans to major in computer engineering. From there, Fox will be in search of a good job and colder weather.
“I really hope I can leave college with connections in order to get the job I want or the skills required to be self employed,” he said. “The hot summers of Georgia are a bit much for me, so I'm hoping to move somewhere where it's a little chillier after college. Maybe New England or Seattle.”