Thomasville trio helped push each other to top spots

May 20—THOMASVILLE — The competition to be at the top of the Thomasville High School class of 2022 was intense — and friendly and beneficial.

Carson Cochran spoke to her classmates as the valedictorian on Friday night at the THS gymnasium, and Sydney Deutsch and Iris Allgrove were the co-salutatorians.

"The three of us are very good friends," Cochran said. "Best friends," chimed in one of the co-salutatorians.

And they readily acknowledge they push each other in the classroom.

"We also challenge each other," Cochran said. "We'll get together and study for different classes together. If I don't understand something, the two of them will help me. It's just nice to have friends as close as we are and have the same rigorous courses."

"We've all shaped each other in a way," Deutsch said.

All three are set in their college plans. Cochran is headed to the University of Georgia to major in biology and minor in Spanish. Deutsch is majoring in biology, too, on a pre-med track. She'll be down the road at Georgia Tech.

Allgrove is going to Georgia Tech too, and she plans on majoring in international affairs with a pre-law track.

Among their favorite classes has been AP Literature, taught by venerable and veteran Scholars Academy English teacher Lynn Stowers.

"I really appreciate hearing her perspective on literature, and she really makes an effort to connect with her students," Deutsch said. "I appreciate the experience she has and she cares for us like we're one of her own children. That's been a real fun experience for me, being able to talk to her and hear her perspective on the world and literature."

"Between learning how to write the way she would like us to and her personal anecdotes," Cochran added, "I've learned so much about English and just life in general."

"She allows us to have fun," Allgrove said. "But when people say she will change the way you write, that is not an understatement. The way she prepares you for college is like no other teacher before. She challenges you and she makes you better. You couldn't ask for a better teacher and a better person. And she's really funny."

It's a shared, common sense of humor, too, apparently.

"She's snarky like the three of us," Allgrove said.

"I think that's way the three of us resonate with her," Deutsch added. "She's very blunt."

"Some days, she's like 'Iris, i'm going to put you in your place,'" Allgrove added.

Cochran also cited an AP Spanish course she took as one of her favorites. It was a small class, and she didn't know any of the other students prior to signing up for it.

"There were only four of us in person for the class," she said. "So we all got really tight and we had a lot of fun in that class. I didn't know any of them beforehand, but it was awesome."

Deutsch also pointed to an AP Art History class she favored and it came in handy with a recent trip to London. She and Cochran were part of a small group that spent spring break there, and it was memorable for more reasons than Cochran having her phone stolen by one of London's clever and adept thieves.

They toured the National Gallery, the Victoria and Albert and the Tate Modern among their stops. Deutsch and Cochran also have taken part in THS' award-winning One Act Play, so they took in two West End musicals and a Shakespeare production during the trip.

Allgrove has her own trip across the Atlantic planned. She went to Paris last year with her grandmother. This year, she's saved up for a trip to Portugal, Spain, France, England and Italy.

Deutsch and Allgrove, as co-salutatorians, shared not only writing their speech but also giving it. They alternated paragraphs.

Even if they approached writing it differently.

"I like to do them when they're due," Allgrove said. "Sydney likes to do them early."

Deutsch and Cochran go back to being friends when they were just starting to make friends.

"When I met Carson, we were 4 years old," Deutsch said.

They started out together at Busy Bear.

"We've been friends since," Cochran said. "We've always been in the same classes."

"As we've grown with each other, it didn't start as academic friendship, it was friendship in general," Deutsch said.

Allgrove moved to Thomasville from Miami. She's gotten accustomed to the Thomasville pace of life — though saying y'all has not yet entered her lexicon.

"I say, 'you guys,'" Allgrove noted, though one of her cohorts quickly added, "Iris has acclimated very well."

"After coming from a really big city and a pretty large middle school, it was kind of frightening, just because it was so different," Allgrove added. "But I also feel because you're seeing the same people most of the time, you are forced to confront new ideas and new people. I think that's the beauty of a small town, in a way. You can't run away from your differences."

Though their high school days are now done, all three expressed how much they valued their experiences at Scholars Academy. Their heavy workloads — Deutsch had 17 AP classes, Cochran 16 and Allgrove 14 — have paid off in allowing them to exempt some of their college requirements.

"I've had a good high school experience," Cochran said. "It's been a lot of fun, especially this year, it's been a lot of fun. I'm sad to see it ending, but I am very excited for college as well. Our high school experience has been awesome. As for the last four years, I've had a really good high school experience. It's been about as good as it can get."

Cochran, also a cheerleader, pointed to the Thomasville football team's Class AA state championship appearance as one of the year's highlights.

"We have a strong arts program and strong academics and really strong sports," Allgrove added.

Deutsch said the number of AP classes available wouldn't have happened at another school.

"I am super appreciative of being able to attend Scholars Academy," she said. "I've been able to really push myself. I think that is going to make the transition to higher level college classes easier.I am super thankful to be at this school. Having an environment where you can challenge yourself is super important and being surrounded by people who also challenge themselves."