Galt High’s top grad looks forward to what lies ahead
Galt High senior Justin Hurst doesn’t wear his heart or his grades on his sleeve. But beneath Hurst’s polite and modest demeanor lurks amazing academic prowess.
This year’s valedictorian with a Grade Point Average of 4.66 has plans to study engineering at Brigham Young University in Utah in the fall.
For the first time, the 17-year-old will live outside of Northern California, a prospect that he finds exciting.
“I’m looking forward to meeting new people and making new friends,” Hurst said.
He added that he will miss all the people he’s known during his prosperous academic career at Galt High, as well as the idea of being able to get an education for free.
“There’s going to be some sadness to high school’s being over,” he said. “I’m probably not going to see most of these people again.”
But instead of dwelling on the sadness of leaving behind friends and family in pursuit of higher education, Hurst is looking forward to the experiences and challenges that lie ahead.
He participated in the German Club and the California Scholarship Foundation as well as the Letterman’s Honor Society. While he excelled in math and science classes, Hurst said his biggest academic challenge so far has been English courses.
But Michael Erwin, an assistant principal who taught Hurst in AP English first semester, said he not only managed to stay the course, but came out ahead with excellent work.
“He’ll be a great contribution to our society,” Erwin said. “You can just kind of feel that with Justin.”
Erwin added that he sees Hurst as a “silent giant,” someone in whom enormous achievements remain modestly cloaked.
Hurst’s hopes for the future are fairly simple — to work as an engineer and earn enough to eventually support a family. In part, Galt High has helped him prepare to meet those goals by building in him strength and tenacity.
During his four years at the school, he said he’s learned to stand firm in the face of adversity and never give up on his dreams. He hopes his fellow classmates will carry a similar lesson with them on their pathway to the future.
Contact reporter Sara Cardine at sarac@lodinews.com.