Top of their class:

WEBUTUCK — The summer months are almost over. Of those high school graduates who just finished up school in June, a good number are making the leap into the next educational challenge: college. Others have found their calling in the workplace, whether they are settling down in careers or just trying to grab life by the horns. Wherever they might be headed, all are in a unique place in their lives right now, a limbo between the world they know and the life ahead of them. The Millerton News recently spoke with this year’s Webutuck valedictorian and salutatorian as they reflect back on their high school careers and look ahead into the unknown. Look for a similar Pine Plains edition in issues to come.

Taking the path less traveled

Earning a 100.8 (weighted) grade point average isn’t a walk in the park, and it might come as a bit of a surprise to some that Camille Roccanova, Webutuck’s 2009 valedictorian, finds herself uninterested in grades or many of the high school accomplishments she’s earned over the last four years.

“I never liked grades,� she admitted. “They don’t mean anything [to me]. And I didn’t want to be valedictorian. I really don’t like public speaking.�

Camille has had an interesting high school career, one that didn’t culminate in Webutuck’s halls but instead at Columbia-Greene Community College in Hudson, where she was able to enroll in classes that she felt were more stimulating and challenging for her than those offered at Webutuck.

“I was bored at Webutuck, and I never liked it,� she said early on in her interview, before easing up a bit later on. “Well, I was bored most of the time, but I did have some good teachers.� Camille explained that not enjoying her stay at Webutuck was motivation to head out and find something she would be happy doing.

“Maybe the fact that I didn’t like high school was a good thing,� she reasoned. Attending classes at Columbia-Greene was a good transition from Webutuck to college life; she drove herself to classes every day, and, as an artist, she found herself with more time to paint.

In a few weeks Bennington College, located in southwestern Vermont, will be Camille’s new home. It doesn’t require a core curriculum, unlike most colleges, and she will be able to design her own major.

“I wanted freedom and independence,� she said. “I wanted to focus on art, but to also take a lot of liberal art classes.�

Camille’s artistic talent comes from her family, who are all creative in some way. Both of her parents are teachers at Webutuck; John teaches technology class while Jean teaches third-, fourth- and fifth-graders.

“We know that she worked really hard,� Jean said about her daughter’s achievement.

For both Camille and her family, the destination (valedictorian) wasn’t as important as the journey. She urged students who feel cramped at school to look into Webutuck’s bridge program.

“It’s definitely worth it,� she said.

As for her grades, Camille said the people around her motivated her to earn top marks.

Jean said she and John are proud of their daughter.

“She always seems to know what’s good for her, and right for her,� she said. “And she does that, even if it’s not the easiest path to take.�

The other side of the spectrum

One would be hard-pressed to find a valedictorian and salutatorian more opposite in attitude and approach to education. Keely McCaffrey, who earned the title of salutatorian after weighing in with a 98.6 GPA, presents herself as the more traditional graduate, having spent her four years walking the halls of the high school.

For Keely, being honored as salutatorian is the prize at the end of a long day.

“I think it seems rewarding for all the work I’ve done,� she said.

Keely said her older sister, Caitlin, has always been an influence, having also earned good grades in school. Top marks were something that Keely says she always expected from herself, but her best performances weren’t necessarily indicative of her favorite subjects.

“It was always a mixed bag,� she said. “I was definitely stronger in math, but I was always more interested in English.�

Keely was a three-season varsity athlete her senior year, participating in soccer, basketball and track.

When asked what she’ll remember most about her high school career, she replied that it would probably be her friends. She said the hard work she put in was worth the effort, and she advised incoming freshmen “just to work hard, so that even it’s all fun, when you get through, you’ll have somewhere else to go.�

At the end of the month Keely will head to Boston University, a big change from her rural hometown of Amenia. She’ll be heading out a week early to take part in a freshman program involving community service with a focus on gender and gay and women’s rights. When classes start, she’ll be in the School of Communications, where she’s contemplating a film major but leaving her options open.