Two White students were name co-valedictorian and co-salutatorian of the West Point High School in Mississippi after the school already selected two black students as valedictorian and salutatorian.
According to the New York Times graduates Ikeria Washington and Layla Temple were named valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively, but the white parents of two other students met with Burnell McDonald, the superintendent of the school district and complained that the school had not properly calculated criteria to determine who should receive top honors.
McDonald then named the two white students as co-valedictorian and co-salutatorian days later after consulting the school’s student handbook.
The families of Washington and Temple are left confused and plans to take legal action.
McDonald meanwhile is saying race did not play a part in determining the outcome of the dispute.
“If someone assumes I was discriminatory in my decisions, they are absolutely wrong,” he told Mississippi Today. “I don’t know if you can tell on the phone, but I’m African-American myself… This is not based on who the parents are, the race of the kids — it’s based on doing what’s right for all students.”
He said the high school guidance counselor was new to the school and was given incorrect information about how to determine the designations.
The counselor selected the two students based on quality point average (QPA), which gives extra weight to grades from advanced placement courses, and is measured on a 4.0 scale, instead of a strict numerical average of the students’ semester grades over their high school career, which the district defines as its grade point average (GPA), he said.
But, Mississippi Today noted that the school’s handbook says GPA “is calculated by averaging the grade point weights assigned to semester averages,” which are 0.0 through 4.0. It goes on to say “Some classes may be weighted double see guidance counselors for this information.”
As for “Class Rank,” the handbook says “a student’s rank in his/her graduating class will be calculated by averaging his/her semester averages.”
Angela Washington, the mother of valedictorian Ikeria, said since the handbook did not specifically say GPA or QPA, McDonald changed the rules on his own “to make the other side happy.”
The school released a statement after they received backlash, explaining their decision. Ikeria Washington and Layla Temple had the highest QPA while the white students had the highest GPA.
“There are two methods to determine a student’s class rank. The first is Quality Point Average, or QPA. The second is Grade Point Average, or GPA,” the school wrote “The two students with the highest GPA are Dominic Borgioli and Emma Berry. The WPCSD feels it necessary to recognize all four seniors at graduation.”
The school went on to accept “full responsibility for this misunderstanding” while apologizing for “any confusion and problems this has caused.”
