A Gaffney High senior waves toward family Thursday as he walked into the stadium with the Class of 2023 to receive their high school diplomas. (Ledger photo by SCOTT POWELL)
Blacksburg and Gaffney High senior classes graduated Thursday with more than $20.5 million in scholarship money from colleges across the country.
Scholarships offered to Gaffney High’s 374 graduates are valued at $14,676,527 over a 4-year period. Blacksburg High’s 130 graduates were offered $5,839,614 in scholarships.
This is the 12th straight year a Gaffney High senior class has topped the $10 million figure in college scholarship offers. The Blacksburg High Class of 2023 is the ninth straight class to leave school with more than $3 million in scholarship offers over a 4-year period.
Blacksburg High Principal Michael Mullinax and Gaffney High Principal Dr. Eric Blanton announced the scholarship totals Thursday evening during ceremonies held in the school stadiums.
The Class of 2023 received scholarship offers from colleges nationwide. It included the first graduates from the school district’s Scholars Academy and Early College programs at Limestone University and Spartanburg Community College, respectively.
Members of the Class of 2023 switch the tassels on their caps Thursday to reflect their status as the newest graduates from Gaffney High School. (Ledger photo by SCOTT POWELL)
“This was a very successful class. Our seniors excelled in academics, arts and athletic competitions during their time at Gaffney High,” Blanton said. “We have students who will stay in the county to attend Limestone University and Spartanburg Community College. We have students who will attend colleges as far away as the University of Oklahoma. Some will enlist in the military and answer the higher calling of defending our nation’s freedoms.”
This year’s graduates received high school diplomas, multiple college credits and certifications from fields of study at the district’s Institute of Innovation career center.
Blacksburg High valedictorian Austine Lancaster and salutatorian Laney Hudson spoke during the school’s graduation. Gaffney High valedictorian Emma Parris and salutatorian Justin Si Le Nguyen delivered remarks.
Blacksburg High graduate Kanye Tate was recognized for 12 years of perfect attendance during the graduation ceremony. Abigail Mace and Austine Lancaster were recognized as Blacksburg High honor graduates. Mace had the highest Scholars Academy grade point average while Lancaster had the highest GPA at Blacksburg High.
The large scholarship totals earned by this year’s Gaffney and Blacksburg High graduates culminated months of hard work by seniors, guidance counselors and parents. Students spent hours filling out college applications, writing essays and securing teacher recommendations to meet scholarship requirements.
Mullinax congratulated the Class of 2023 for their perseverance during a challenging high school career that started in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic where change was a constant in the first two years of their high school experience. He said these lessons will serve these Blacksburg graduates well in life as they pursue higher education, enter the workforce and serve in the military.
“We wish you nothing less than happiness as you begin your own journey towards success in life,” Mullinax told the Blacksburg High graduates. “Always remember, ‘Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat.’”
This year’s graduating classes had a large number of students eligible for South Carolina Legislative Incentive for Future Excellence (LIFE) scholarships.
Palmetto Fellows are offered annually by South Carolina as an incentive for the top high school seniors to attend an in-state college.
Gaffney High had 14 members of the Class of 2023 who received Palmetto Fellows scholarships. Three Blacksburg High students received Palmetto Fellows.
A Palmetto Fellows scholarship is worth $6,700 for the first year. That figure increases to $7,500 for the remaining three years students can receive the Palmetto Fellows.
Gaffney High had 274 students qualify for a 2- or 4-year LIFE scholarship. Blacksburg High had 95 students earn LIFE scholarships.
Students need a 3.0 grade point average to receive a 2-year LIFE scholarship. Students must meet two of three state criteria for a $5,000 scholarship. They must be ranked in the Top 30 percent of their senior class, have a minimum 3.0 grade point average and score at least a 24 on the ACT or 1,000 on the SAT college admissions tests.
To keep the LIFE scholarship, South Carolina students must earn a cumulative 3.0 grade point average and an average of 30 credit hours each academic year.
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