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Selma High’s class valedictorian Jordin Martin and salutatorian  Darian Walton-Dillard were not affected by the relocation of Friday night’s graduation ceremony. 

Heavy rain forced the graduation ceremony from Memorial Stadium into the Gymnasium as 147 students received their diplomas.

Martin and Walton-Dillard were cool, calm, and collected as seniors slowly piled into the gymnasium. They were thrilled at their high school accomplishments before heading off to college in the fall. 

“Being the valedictorian means a lot, it was something I worked for since the ninth grade,” Martin said. “It really came to fruition for me.”

Walton-Dillard said finishing as the second-best student is special to her.

“Being chosen as salutatorian means a lot and my hard work didn’t go in vain,” Walton-Dillard said. “I’ll take the lesson from attending Selma High is that I was able to do the things I wanted to do.”

Martin will attend Alabama and major in Nursing. Wilson-Dillard will attend Florida A&M University, major in Psychology, and minor in Criminal Justice. 

The Class of 2024’s motto was a quote from Civil Rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience but where he stands during challenges and controversy.”