Thomas Jefferson

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Spartans Roll Through a Great Semester

Posted 01/23/2017 by Madeleine Abram

Spartans celebrate their academic achievements from the past semester. photo by Anja Oss

TJ students and staff gather to recognize academic achievements from the fall semester.

At the start of each semester, the entire student body gathers to recognize the achievements of those who attained a grade point average of 3.0 or higher from the previous semester. The honor roll is divided into four different ranks based on GPA: Bronze (3.0-3.4), Silver (3.5-3.9), Gold (4.0-4.4), and Platinum (4.5+). During the assembly, each individual group is acknowledged for their outstanding commitment to school work. Furthermore, the Platinum group is invited on stage to recognize their superb loyalty to academics.

Despite the Honor Roll title, there are additional awards that students can obtain by displaying remarkable scholastic abilities. All Spartans are eligible to obtain an academic letter by maintaining a grade point average of 3.5 or higher for three consecutive semesters. Principal Mike Christoff stated, “Kids who have a 3.5 or higher for three semesters in a row get an Academic Letterman Award. If it’s their first time getting a letter, they get a letter and a pin. If they’ve received [the award] before, they get a bar for each additional semester they get the award…we give kids letters for sports, but we wanted to give kids letters for academics too.” In addition to receiving letters and pins, Academic Lettermen celebrated their sweet success with cake and fruit punch.

Overall, these past few years have sparked a drastic improvement in students’ grade point averages. This year, 45% of the student body was placed on the Honor Roll. Each year, the number of students on the Honor Roll seems to be growing exponentially. Admin is in high hopes that this assembly encourages the rest of the student body to strive for success and obtain a position on the Honor Roll for future semesters.