This year’s graduating class will now be unhindered by class rank, meaning there is no valedictorian or a top ten percent of the class. The class ranking system has become outdated over time, and nullifying it is an excellent decision by the administration.

            In 2007, LZHS started weighting classes based on difficulty making it challenging to rank students, because it becomes a matter of opinion on who is ranked above whom. The weighted system removes the objectivity from class rank, as who can say that one student is better than another for taking more difficult classes.

            “Rank was hurting more than helping students, there were students well over a 3.0 that were in the bottom half of their class,” Jetta Grano, counselor, said. “So when you get rid of rank, it makes the schools analyze the students individually.”

            Many students are overwhelmed by school as it is, and class rank only adds to that pressure. Students will put all their time into studying to keep up their position in the rankings.

            By eliminating this source of animosity between kids, the administration has made an excellent decision and has aided students in their learning process by getting rid of an antiquated system. Students feel far less pressure to compete with other students. While some argue that without competition, students are less driven, it also discourages students who find that no matter how hard they work, they are not moving up in the ranks.

            “With my youngest brother, who is three years older than me, he was a really competitive student and he worked really hard and would come home and say, ‘I’m this rank and I really wish I was this rank,’ and I think it weighed on him,” Katie Creagh, senior, said.

            These changes have not only affected LZHS student. Schools throughout the nation have also been pushed to forgo class rankings in order to aid their students in their college application process. Many elite universities overlook students as soon as they are edged out of the top ten people in their class, according to the College Board website.

 Students hindered by class rank are pushed to create a course load that boosts their GPA rather than helps them advance themselves as a student. This means that students take easier classes in order to keep up a perfect GPA, not only to impress colleges but to beat their classmates in the race to be the best.

            “I think instead of students saying, ‘Oh, I’ll take this class to boost [my GPA],’ they decide to take classes that they are actually interested in,” Creagh said.

            Colleges do consider a student’s GPA, but seeing classes tailored to a student’s interests shows universities individuality and character. While colleges look at class rank as a part of an application, not having it will not hurt a student’s chances when they apply, according to Grano.

            “Without class rank, schools take [the LZHS] profile and look at the student’s profile and do their own calculations and consider the students on an individual level,” Grano said.

            Many LZHS students look at high school as a stepping stone to college and the administration has made a wise decision in getting rid of class rank that will not only ease the pressure on students, but assist in their application process as well.