Meet Alyssa Franck (right) and Leah Van Der Hulst (left), the top two students of the Hamilton High School Class of 2024, respectively. The two students, much like the entire top ten, has worked tirelessly both inside the classroom and out to achieve success.
Franck, this year's valedictorian, maintains a 4.2 GPA with a 1490 SAT while also becoming an Eagle Scout in 2023 for planting and designing a rain garden behind Blue Star Elementary! On top of that, Franck is heavily involved in band, theater, tennis, and National Honor Society.
Meanwhile, Van Der Hulst has a 1480 SAT score, a 4.18 GPA, National Honor Society, and the yearbook class at HHS.
"The people here are very nice, even in the top ten, we're all very close, very good friends. It's just a very supportive community where we all help each other," Franck added.
HHS principal Mitch Bosch described the class as a "Group full of leaders," while addressing them weeks ahead of graduation, and Franck says that's exactly how she sees it as well.
"There are a lot of amazing leaders in this class," Franck said. "For example, in the band there are several kids who are very exemplary. They're amazing people and everyone in our class deserves credit for the amazing thing they're doing."
Franck will go on to study chemical engineering at Michigan Tech. For Van Der Hulst, her next journey will take her to Hope College to pursue a career in nursing. Before that, however, she is going to soak up the final days with her classmates ahead of graduation on May 23.
"What stands out most about our class is just how genuinely nice everyone is," she said. "It doesn't matter if we are best friends or if we only had one class together, it felt like I could carry a conversation with anyone and I think that's a trait that can take people far and set them up for success."
