Valedictorian-to-be sues

SteveDallas · 05-05-2003, 11:45 AM

OK, check out this story and then share your thoughts... but...... this is going to be hard...

I want you to ignore the lawsuit. Just forget it exists.

Why?

Because commentary on this story has essentially boiled down to, "oh, spoiled brat judge's daughter, something goes wrong and she files a lawsuit. Whine whine whine what a crybaby."

I'd like to leave aside the issue of whether a lawsuit is a good or appropriate way to deal with this situation (I would submit that it's not--for several reasons, one being exactly this unsympathetic press coverage), and examine the issue of whether this girl has a beef. Is there actually something wrong with the school naming a co-valedictorian? Why or why not?

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/local/5765325.htm

Cam · 05-05-2003, 11:49 AM

If it's true that the other seniors could not achieve the same weighted grades then I think the school is in the right. But if the other students had the ability to achieve the same weighted grade average then the girl has the right to the top honor.

05-05-2003, 12:16 PM

We had this issue back at my school.

I'm sorry, but she's not subject to the same classes, so therefore regular students are not at liberty to have such an "easy" schedule, so therefore the school is in the right by declaring co-valedictorians. I'd go further and say that she is lucky that they even consider her, seeing as she is not subject to classes that other students are required to participate in. It kind of weakens the honor that the regular students get, you know?

Now, as far as the lawsuit... I hope she loses in court, and I believe that she will. $200,000 in compensatory damages? $2.5 million in punitive? What, is she intent on destroying education? Like teachers don't need that money more? And where exactly did she get these numbers?

Here's to you catching a very nasty cold, Ms. Bitch.

Whit · 05-05-2003, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Hornstine's lawyer said yesterday that his client has been accepted to Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, Duke and Cornell Universities but has not yet decided which she will attend.

     Wait, she can't make it through a day of high school yet she's going to one of these schools? What is the importance of this anyway? Could no one else from her school get in? If so that information isn't provided, only suggested. They keep telling us this girl is smart, well we knew that. Where's the info on the other guys?
     What's more, I think this lawsuit shows exactly what type of lawyer she intends to be.
     Also, I think that since she didn't do the full schedule the Principle was within his rights to take that into account. It sucks she has this health problem, but I had friends that got all A's and had to work after school. I can't really feel that bad for her. The sad part is that had she accepted it magnanimously I'd have had a lot of respect for her. The lawsuit scraps that.

wolf · 05-05-2003, 01:59 PM

Smerconish did a segment on this story the other day ...

My high school (after my graduation) had a similar issue ... a regular full-time student took additional 'independent study' classes and beefed up his GPA sufficiently to edge past the person who had been #1 in that class essentially from grade school. I believe the district eventually disallowed the grades from the independent study classes to be considered for graduation honors but did include them in the overall gpa for college consideration.

They were saying on the radio that the "immune disorder" was chronic fatigue syndrome ... which is newspeak for "too lazy to get out of bed but has a doctor's note".

She had an unfair advantage over her classmates and should not, IMHO, be valedictorian.

What would the district do if a kid who was totally (instead of half) homeschooled qualified for valedictory honors? I don't think we'd be even having this discussion.

russotto · 05-05-2003, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by wolf
Smerconish did a segment on this story the other day ...

Which side is he on? That counts as at least 10 points towards the other side :-).

They were saying on the radio that the "immune disorder" was chronic fatigue syndrome ... which is newspeak for "too lazy to get out of bed but has a doctor's note".

Isn't that usually accompanied by weight gain, though?

verbatim · 05-05-2003, 04:14 PM

I say they just give her a zero for gym then re-calculate the grade standings. After all, she didnt take gym, so she earned no credit in it.

But now that she did file a lawsuit, I think they should just give it straight to the other kid(s). It is the school's decision to declare a valedictorian, not the court's.

That Guy · 05-05-2003, 04:15 PM

It's not like any of it matters anyway.

When I graduated, our VD received a full scholarship to UT. Sometime during her first year, she had met a busboy at a local greasy-spoon in Corpus (where we went to HS), two years her junior. He was still in school.
Sometime during the summer after our freshamn year in college, she and this dirtbag were our cruising around near the beach. A cop started following them (curious to see what they were doing out late in the area), but because they had beer in the car, and nobody was of age at the time, they decided to flee. Since she had some type of Geo at the time, the cop had no trouble keeping up in his Caprice cruiser with the LS/1. Somehow, she mistook a boat ramp for a driveway, and ended up plunging the car into a canal. She and her boyfriend were okay. His younger friend in the backseat wsan't. From the story I heard, he was unable to push the passenger seat forward and climb out (let's hear it for coupe safety). Negligence charges wer dropped against her, and the last time we spoke, she had not gone back to school.

Being the "slacker" and "goof-off surfer dude" that I am, I would say that my success thus far has measured up a little better, albeit cicumstances of luck and judgement. So a big THBBBT to all those teachers that told me to try harder in school if I wanted to do anything in life. And screw the ruling-class in school, because they just make the rest of us look bad.

warch · 05-05-2003, 04:37 PM

Speaking as an educator...Scrap the whole valedictorian thing, scrap the drinking age. The school board should buy every kid who is still alive at the age of 18 a beer.

xoxoxoBruce · 05-05-2003, 05:20 PM

Kadri has a valid point.
Since she's been accepted to college and can claim valedictorian on her resume (co, schmo, who'll know) she's just being a c*nt.
She'll do the legal profession proud.

Radar · 05-05-2003, 06:28 PM

She doesn't deserve to be valedictorian if she's not held to 100% of the same standards as the other students. I'm with verbatim on this. She should be given a zero for gym and even held back until she finishes it. She's one nasty bitch because it's not enough that she gets the title, but nobody else can share it. My school had two valedictorians with equal GPA's. I hope she not only gets her case thrown out of court, but she's forced to pay court costs and fined for a frivilous law-suit and the schools that accepted her witdraw their offers in light of her poor behavior.

Griff · 05-05-2003, 07:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by xoxoxoBruce

She'll do the legal profession proud.

Yep. She's their kinda people. Some people never figure out what to do for a living, this dirtbag was born to it.

SteveDallas · 05-05-2003, 08:22 PM

Man, you guys are vicious! Keep it up, but keep in mind the original assignment. (I'll throw in my opinion later when I have time to type it out. Those who know me can probably predict where I'll come down.)

xoxoxoBruce · 05-05-2003, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Kadri has a valid point.

I covered the asignment.

She's still a c*nt:p

Radar · 05-05-2003, 09:01 PM

Quote:

examine the issue of whether this girl has a beef. Is there actually something wrong with the school naming a co-valedictorian? Why or why not?

She absolutely does not have a valid beef. She didn't earn the valedictorian title based on the same requirements and merits as the other students. She has no claim to the title at all. I think the school is being kind to allow her to share it with someone else.

She's got the old "It's not enough that I win; everyone else must lose" attitude and it makes me sick.

05-05-2003, 11:49 AM	#2
Cam dripping with ignorance Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Grand Forks ND Posts: 642	If it's true that the other seniors could not achieve the same weighted grades then I think the school is in the right. But if the other students had the ability to achieve the same weighted grade average then the girl has the right to the top honor. __________________ After the seventh beer I generally try and stay away from the keyboard, I apologize for what happens when I fail.

05-05-2003, 01:59 PM	#5
wolf lobber of scimitars Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Phila Burbs Posts: 20,774	Smerconish did a segment on this story the other day ... My high school (after my graduation) had a similar issue ... a regular full-time student took additional 'independent study' classes and beefed up his GPA sufficiently to edge past the person who had been #1 in that class essentially from grade school. I believe the district eventually disallowed the grades from the independent study classes to be considered for graduation honors but did include them in the overall gpa for college consideration. They were saying on the radio that the "immune disorder" was chronic fatigue syndrome ... which is newspeak for "too lazy to get out of bed but has a doctor's note". She had an unfair advantage over her classmates and should not, IMHO, be valedictorian. What would the district do if a kid who was totally (instead of half) homeschooled qualified for valedictory honors? I don't think we'd be even having this discussion. __________________ wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis

05-05-2003, 04:14 PM	#7
verbatim Vice-President of Resentment Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Pennsultucky Posts: 199	I say they just give her a zero for gym then re-calculate the grade standings. After all, she didnt take gym, so she earned no credit in it. But now that she did file a lawsuit, I think they should just give it straight to the other kid(s). It is the school's decision to declare a valedictorian, not the court's. __________________ <-- I'm with stupid

05-05-2003, 05:20 PM	#10
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	Kadri has a valid point. Since she's been accepted to college and can claim valedictorian on her resume (co, schmo, who'll know) she's just being a c*nt. She'll do the legal profession proud. __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

05-05-2003, 11:45 AM	#1
SteveDallas Your Bartender Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Philly Burbs, PA Posts: 7,651	Valedictorian-to-be sues OK, check out this story and then share your thoughts... but...... this is going to be hard... I want you to ignore the lawsuit. Just forget it exists. Why? Because commentary on this story has essentially boiled down to, "oh, spoiled brat judge's daughter, something goes wrong and she files a lawsuit. Whine whine whine what a crybaby." I'd like to leave aside the issue of whether a lawsuit is a good or appropriate way to deal with this situation (I would submit that it's not--for several reasons, one being exactly this unsympathetic press coverage), and examine the issue of whether this girl has a beef. Is there actually something wrong with the school naming a co-valedictorian? Why or why not? http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/local/5765325.htm

05-05-2003, 12:16 PM	#3
dave Guest Posts: n/a	We had this issue back at my school. I'm sorry, but she's not subject to the same classes, so therefore regular students are not at liberty to have such an "easy" schedule, so therefore the school is in the right by declaring co-valedictorians. I'd go further and say that she is lucky that they even consider her, seeing as she is not subject to classes that other students are required to participate in. It kind of weakens the honor that the regular students get, you know? Now, as far as the lawsuit... I hope she loses in court, and I believe that she will. $200,000 in compensatory damages? $2.5 million in punitive? What, is she intent on destroying education? Like teachers don't need that money more? And where exactly did she get these numbers? Here's to you catching a very nasty cold, Ms. Bitch.

05-05-2003, 04:15 PM	#8
That Guy He who reads, sometimes writes. Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: at the keyboard Posts: 791	It's not like any of it matters anyway. When I graduated, our VD received a full scholarship to UT. Sometime during her first year, she had met a busboy at a local greasy-spoon in Corpus (where we went to HS), two years her junior. He was still in school. Sometime during the summer after our freshamn year in college, she and this dirtbag were our cruising around near the beach. A cop started following them (curious to see what they were doing out late in the area), but because they had beer in the car, and nobody was of age at the time, they decided to flee. Since she had some type of Geo at the time, the cop had no trouble keeping up in his Caprice cruiser with the LS/1. Somehow, she mistook a boat ramp for a driveway, and ended up plunging the car into a canal. She and her boyfriend were okay. His younger friend in the backseat wsan't. From the story I heard, he was unable to push the passenger seat forward and climb out (let's hear it for coupe safety). Negligence charges wer dropped against her, and the last time we spoke, she had not gone back to school. Being the "slacker" and "goof-off surfer dude" that I am, I would say that my success thus far has measured up a little better, albeit cicumstances of luck and judgement. So a big THBBBT to all those teachers that told me to try harder in school if I wanted to do anything in life. And screw the ruling-class in school, because they just make the rest of us look bad.

05-05-2003, 04:37 PM	#9
warch lurkin old school Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,796	Speaking as an educator...Scrap the whole valedictorian thing, scrap the drinking age. The school board should buy every kid who is still alive at the age of 18 a beer.

05-05-2003, 06:28 PM	#11
Radar Constitutional Scholar Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ocala, FL Posts: 4,006	She doesn't deserve to be valedictorian if she's not held to 100% of the same standards as the other students. I'm with verbatim on this. She should be given a zero for gym and even held back until she finishes it. She's one nasty bitch because it's not enough that she gets the title, but nobody else can share it. My school had two valedictorians with equal GPA's. I hope she not only gets her case thrown out of court, but she's forced to pay court costs and fined for a frivilous law-suit and the schools that accepted her witdraw their offers in light of her poor behavior.

05-05-2003, 08:22 PM	#13
SteveDallas Your Bartender Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Philly Burbs, PA Posts: 7,651	Man, you guys are vicious! Keep it up, but keep in mind the original assignment. (I'll throw in my opinion later when I have time to type it out. Those who know me can probably predict where I'll come down.)

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)