Ivy, Cotter named top students
By Melinda L. Lucas
The list of honor students in the 2022 Albany High School senior class was released last week, naming Luke Ivy as valedictorian and Sarah Cotter as salutatorian.
Ivy, son of Paul and Ginny Ivy, has a near-perfect four-year average of 99.586.
The salutatorian, daughter of Mike and Darla Cotter, has earned an overall average of 96.857.
Both are Albany natives, and both are extremely active in all aspects of student life, ranging from success in multiple sports to appearances at UIL state academic events.
Local students earn the traditional grade point average based on numeric grades for each class. However, it is actually a weighted grade point system that is used to determine class ranking.
Rank is based on core academic classes only with honors and dual credit courses receiving more rank points.
The students in the top 25 percent of the class are designated as honor students. This year there are six honor students in addition to the top two graduates.
The honor students, in alphabetical order, include Susie Cormack, Ty Everitt, Clara Holson, Allison Lemond, Ryan Mark, and Brooks Neece.
Valedictorian
The 2022 valedictorian, Luke Ivy, was named a National Merit Commended Scholar earlier in the school year, and has been a top honor student throughout his high school career.
He has competed and advanced in UIL academic events ranging from math and science to journalism, garnering the top biology core at the state competition in 2021.
A co-editor of The Lions Roar student newspaper, he has been on staff for the last three years and has earned state level awards at the Interscholastic League Press Conference in news and feature writing, as well as photography.
A member of the National Honor Society, he has also served as a class officer, including president for the last two years, and student council officer.
Equally as successful in athletics throughout the school year, Ivy is a five-sport athlete, with honors in football, basketball, and baseball, along with regional advancements in tennis doubles and being a state track finalist in the triple jump.
He intends to attend Rice University, where he will major in biosciences with a concentration in Cell Biology and Genetics on a pre-med track, with plans to become a physician or have a career in medical research and innovation.
Ivy will also have the opportunity to continue his track and field career on the Rice men’s track team.
Salutatorian
Sarah Cotter is this year’s student body president and has been a class officer all four years as well, along with being president of the National Honor Society.
Her many successes in academics include this year’s upcoming state appearance in editorial writing. She has competed and placed in other journalism events, as well as in ready writing, mathematics, and calculator skills, and she was a member of the second place state TACS Academic Challenge team earlier this year.
Also a co-editor for The Lions Roar, Cotter has won several ILPC awards and helped design pages and graphics for Gold and Silver Stars over her high school career.
The salutatorian attributes her leadership skills to her success in Albany athletics, stating that achievements in volleyball, tennis, and track gave her the confidence to move forward in other areas.
She helped lead her volleyball team to the state semifinals in 2020 and the regional tournament in 2021, amassing numerous honors along the way.
This week, she is competing for the second consecutive year at the state tennis tournament in girls singles, and this weekend, she will compete at the regional track meet.
The salutatorian plans to attend Texas A&M University, where she plans to study business and psychology.
