Earning a high school diploma marks a milestone in life for a number of graduating seniors, and students talk about and look forward to it throughout their time at NC. Four years of hard work, dedication, procrastination, and a countless amount of standardized tests all lead up to the moment of graduation. By letting Magnet students graduate first, the school puts them on a pedestal they do not deserve.

“Magnet students shouldn’t graduate first because they kind of fly through high school by doing the normal amount that an on-level student would do,” Sophomore Shelby Ruhl said.

Magnet students must attend specific AP classes, but anyone can take the courses and the title of “Magnet student” makes no difference to college admission teams. Colleges pay attention to the number of AP classes taken, not the title that comes with them. Allowing Magnet students to graduate first only lets them build upon the egotistical idea that “normal students” share no similarities with them in terms of class difficulty level.  Rewarding students for simply attending NC’s Magnet program seems absurd.

Graduation should celebrate all students’ accomplishments in high school, not just the students who seem “more intelligent.” All seniors receive a diploma at graduation to celebrate their accomplishments, but giving Magnet students their diplomas first gives them more of a reason to believe they have the right to graduate before other students. If I sat through graduation with these conditions, I would feel as if my high school accomplishments did not share the same significance as a Magnet student’s.    

When attending graduation, one should feel pride in their work, but Magnet students take the spotlight away from others. They should graduate with other seniors, not separately, and NC should celebrate all seniors equally.