Boy, being a valedictorian is a much more exciting position than it used to be. You'd think it would be unheard of for a valedictorian to be escorted from her school building and denied her diploma, but it has happened, because Ms. Tiffany Schley, valedictorian of Brooklyn's High School of Legal Studies, pushed the envelope with her graduation speech:
A top student who's going to Smith College on a full scholarship this fall, Schley was brutally honest about the High School of Legal Studies during Thursday's graduation ceremonies in Bushwick.
Among her gripes: The school has had four principals in four years, overcrowded classes, a shortage of textbooks and other basic materials, unqualified teachers, unstable staffing and uncaring administrators who refused to meet with students to discuss the school's problems.
"They always want to keep the problems hush-hush, but what goes on in this school is real," said Tiffany, who was also the editor of the school newspaper, yearbook chairwoman and a member of the student council.
One teacher who attended the graduation said the audience was shocked by the speech. "The administration was very nervous, but the students were definitely in support of her," the teacher said.
When Schley came to school yesterday to pick up her diploma with the rest of her classmates, she and her mother were told they had been disrespectful and were escorted out of the building.
Some teachers support Schley's speech, others think the punishment (holding her diploma hostage until she apologizes) is appropriate. Doesn't sound like Ms. Schley is going to back down (and somehow I doubt Smith will be nervous about admitting such an outspoken young woman, diploma or no diploma).
And I love this comment from Fark on the story:
Oh, and if I were this girl [being forced to apologize], I'd paraphrase the "I'm sorry" speech from Babylon 5.
"I apologize. I'm .. sorry. I'm sorry we had to defend ourselves against an unwarranted attack. I'm sorry that your crew was *stupid* enough to fire on a station filled with a quarter million civilians, including your own people. And I'm sorry I waited as long as I did, before I blew them all straight to hell."
Posted by kswygert at June 27, 2004 11:04 AM