Dad buys billboard after top-ranked son isn't named valedictorian

WAKE COUNTY, N.C. — A North Carolina dad takes matters into his own hands when his son’s high school doesn’t name him valedictorian despite having the best grades of the senior class.

East Wake High School and Wake County Public School Board did away with naming a valedictorian, replacing it with the Latin honors ranking system, the News and Observer reported.

That means that students with a GPA of 4.25 or higher will graduate summa cum laude. A GPA of 4.0 to 4.249 will get graduates a magna cum laude and students with a GPA of 3.75 to 3.99 will graduate under cum laude, the News and Observer reported.

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The district was going to make the change next year, after announcing it last month. But Josh Allmon's school did it this school year. Allmon was still ranked number one of his graduating class, but wasn't given the valedictorian title, Fox News reported.

Allmon graduated with a 5.31 grade point average. About two tenths of a point separated the first- and second-ranked students, WRAL reported.

So Allmon’s father Gary paid a billboard company in their town to declare his son valedictorian.

The billboard, which was displayed through June 12, which was also the day of East Wake’s graduation, was somewhat of a surprise for the younger Allmon.

"I was flabbergasted when I first saw the billboard, and enjoyed the recognition that it gave, but was also appreciative of the fact that it allowed for a broader message/warning to be shared," Josh Allmon told Fox News.

Allmon wrote on Twitter that he hopes that the billboard shows that the policy change will affect students, Fox News reported.

Cox Media Group