Hinsdale Central No Longer Naming Valedictorians

In 2007, Hinsdale Central High School eliminated class rankings. Now, the affluent suburban Chicago high school, which has been consistently named one of the best schools in the state, has decided to eliminate valedictorians as well.

The Doings reported that the school's principal said it was only natural to eliminate a position based on class rankings when the school was no longer ranking students. Instead, the school will recognize the top 2 percent of graduating classes, which would honor 13 or 14 students out of about 675 in a graduating class.

“If you don’t have class ranking, it’s a little nonsensical to recognize your top one or two students,” Hinsdale Central Principal Michael McGrory told The Doings. “Recognizing more students now with a top 2 percent won’t in any way impact kids for scholarship or college admission."

The school decided to eliminate class rankings originally because it was "limiting students' post-secondary and college opportunities," McGrory said, according to NBC Chicago. The old ranking system would place a student with a 4.0 GPA anywhere from 50 to 100 in a class, which limited college acceptance opportunities, he said.

Students needing their ranking for college applications will still be able to receive it, ABC Chicago reported.

Since the change went into effect immediately, Peter Kallis from the Class of 2011 was officially the school's final valedictorian.