On graduation day, most high school seniors would likely spend their mornings sleeping in or preparing activities with family and friends.
Laila King spent her Thursday morning writing thank-you cards to teachers and mentors at Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts Academy (CAPA), a city magnet school located Downtown.
“I’ve had so many lovely teachers during my time at CAPA, we have lovely social workers and guidance counselors,” said King, 18, of Oakland. “They’ve been helpful to me, supporting me emotionally and academically on my journey.”
King’s journey has been rich with civic and extracurricular experiences leading up to Pittsburgh Public Schools’ graduation this week. PPS held commencement ceremonies at the University of Pittsburgh’s Petersen Events Center.
King is one of CAPA’s salutatorians. Upon graduation, she plans to attend Yale University on a full scholarship to study the history of science, medicine and public health.
“Having the opportunity to have a high-quality education — and have it for free — the decision wasn’t hard for me,” she said.
At CAPA, King was involved in the Black Student Union, the African American Center for Advanced Studies council, the Superintendent Advisory Council and Stand Together, a club focused on mental health and substance abuse disorder awareness.
Outside of school, King served as a high school ambassador for PA Youth Vote, a coalition dedicated to increasing voter registration.
“It helps students see the different issues they care about — the environment, school issues, gun violence — and how that connects to voting,” she said.
In 2024, King was named “Youth of the Year” by the Boys and Girls Club of Western Pa., a group she’s been a part of since middle school. Last year, she was named one of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s Young Ambassadors, focused on environmentalism.
“There’s always things you can do locally to help make change,” King said. “In general, when people think of things they can do, they think of the big organizations. But there’s always organizations doing good stuff locally.”
PPS recognized 68 salutatorians and valedictorians across its high schools during the district’s “Breakfast of Champions” event this week at the University of Pittsburgh.
They are:
Allderdice: Thomas Aldous, Mylo Carter, Zoe Casci, Zachary Coffey, Sivon Feinberg, Markus Kuhn, Lilja Heller-Matza, Priya Holloway, Alexandra Koedinger, Max Lisien, Arathena McCormick, Annabelle Oberbarnscheidt, Kofi Opoku Dakwa, Nora Jeanne Molyneaux, Luke Pena, Vanessa Prentiss, Samuel Stavchansky, Graham Whitacre, Olin Woods and Matei Zivanov, valedictorians. There were no salutatorians.
Brashear: Sidra Almontaha Alhariri, Alaa Mohamed Arafah and Sabrina Snyder, valedictorians. Hunter Rodrigues, salutatorian.
CAPA: Veronika Harless, Ava Linton, Charles Russell and Finn Shaffer, valedictorians. Laila King, Irmak Kucukakosy and Sebastian Wilburn, salutatorians.
Carrick: Karim Bey and Carol Ou, valedictorians. Gabriel Bodien, salutatorian.
Obama: Viola Aderholt, Carl Cogan, Savanna Duckett, Sean Gaines, Samuel Pellegrino, Orli Trumbull and Isaac Werner, valedictorians. Kennedy Gilliard, Georgia Jones, Charles Bottoms and Diori Cervantes, salutatorians.
Online Academy: Talia Rentschler, valedictorian. Ernest “EJ” Yasaña, salutatorian.
Perry: Makaila Nyambe, valedictorian. Kendall Roberts, salutatorian.
Science and Technology Academy: Penelope Bard, Sebastian Bard, Jacob Blackledge, Morgan Brown, Roscoe Fey, Roman Gray, Timothy Kovacs, Chapin Nienhuis and Ainsley Schroeffel, valedictorians. Jack Dempsey, Pum Khan Khual, Mariska Kiraly, Xavier Lysaght, Caleb Myers and Ian Potts, salutatorians.
Milliones (UPREP): Achaela Riggans, valedictorian. Aiden Kabo, salutatorian.
Westinghouse: Gabrielle Cook, valedictorian. Jeremiah Bowey-Sinclair, salutatorian.