Outstanding academic achievement has won senior Vernon Grizzard the honor of being named the Noon Optimist Student of the Month for February.
Grizzard, who is ranked No. 5 in his class of 116, has a GPA of 98.33 and an SAT score of 1400. In his four years at the Upper School, he has earned seven honors and five AP credits.
“As a student, Davis is incredible. As a person, he is absolutely terrific! Easily one of the most delightful young people I know – and one of the most fun to teach, Davis has achieved an absolutely wonderful record at Darlington – both academically and personally,” said Associate Headmaster Sam Moss. “I have been extremely impressed with Davis – and extremely fond of him – since I first got to know him as a student in my Honors English class his freshman year. Davis was witty, engaging, lively and a delight to teach. He was also focused, serious, responsible and insightful – in short, a teacher’s dream.
“Davis was always prepared, always seemed interested and always had something to contribute. All of his teachers through the years have seen those same fine qualities in abundance that I saw in him as a freshman,” Moss continued. “Remarkably, English was not even his major field of interest; Davis’s real love is mathematics, in which he possesses amazingly keen insight. Nevertheless, from what I saw of him in my class, one would have thought that English was his passion in life.”
While at Darlington, Grizzard has been awarded the Georgia Certificate of Merit, the United States Achievement Academy National Science Merit Award, winner of this year’s Class AA State Math Tournament, and has been named an AP Scholar and a Furman Scholar. He has also participated in the Duke Talent Identification Program (Summer 2000); the Math Team, of which he is captain; tutors students in math; and is a member of the Cum Laude Society.
In addition to his academic endeavors, Grizzard has also made time for several extracurricular activities, including the House Senate, Varsity Cross Country and Varsity Soccer. As a senior, he has served as captain of both varsity teams. He has also volunteered with the YMCA and the First Presbyterian Church Soup Kitchen.
“I’ve known Davis for almost three years now, and I can honestly say he’s one of the most dependable young men I’ve ever known,” said Tara Inman, head of house and college adviser. “As a Head Prefect in the Inman House, he’s called upon frequently to oversee the organization of dinners, dances, community service events and chapel services, and he as never failed in his task. He is punctual (a rarity for many teenagers) and always polite. He manages all of this while maintaining an outstanding academic record, playing soccer and running cross country. Success in college will be second nature for Davis.”
Grizzard will be honored, along with Darlington’s Student of the Month for March, at a luncheon Monday, March 28. He is the son of Vernon and Carol Grizzard of Rome, Ga.
