On May 17, NDB designated a special ceremony to celebrate the successes of high achieving NDB students.

NDB held its annual Academic Awards ceremony to celebrate the academic achievements of the student body across various classes. The ceremony awarded students in classes across each department including English, Kinesiology, Mathematics, Science, Social Sciences and Visual and Performing Arts.

Other awards included the Michelle Michelleti Award, the Frank Reyerson Scholarship, the Head of School Award, the St. Julie Billiart Awards, among various other achievements and forms of recognition. Rising seniors were also offered scholarships to colleges, such as the University of Rochester, if they chose to attend, exemplifying their scholastic achievements in areas pertaining to math, science, and technology. The awards towards the end of the ceremony were primarily geared towards seniors, honoring them with cords to wear for their graduation.

The Valedictorian, Ariel Lucas, and Salutatorians, Eva Nichter and Kristi Xia were announced as well.

When asked about her feelings on winning the achievement of Valedictorian, Lucas shared her sentiments post-ceremony.

“I cannot believe it. It’s very surreal,” says Ariel Lucas. “I’m grateful and very thankful for Notre Dame’s support these past four years, and for my classmates and teachers.”

This year, more awards were offered to the students that surprised those who received them, as they did not expect such distinguished and honorable accolades to be handed out in addition to the Department Awards.

“I thought that it was just going to be the Department Awards this year,” says senior Clarissa Wing. “I was really happy to receive the St. Julie Billiart Scholar Award for Humanities. Thank you to all of my teachers who have supported me throughout this process. I am just very grateful to receive this award and I feel very honored. It was a very nice surprise.”

With the amount of awards offered, there were plenty of opportunities for students to get acknowledged for their success over the course of the year.

“I was surprised with how many awards there were,” says senior Ella Chatterjee. “I was so grateful that so many people could be recognized for all of their achievements. I got the Outstanding Achievement Award in AP Calculus AB and AP Statistics, but I had no idea about the St. Julie Billiart Awards which I received in Computer Science.”

The ceremony was a special way to honor each student’s passion, hard work, and dedication to academics. Whether that be in the form of a medal, certificate, or scholarship, students felt like their hard work over the course of the past year paid off, and that they are ending the school year off with a token of gratitude.