Chapter 19

The students stood in line by class. There were two advanced classes, six honor classes, six general classes, and six liberal arts classes. Altogether, there were 20 groups made up of a large crowd. First, Timothy Thompson, the principal of Linkon First High School, spoke. Then, Matthew Sullivan, the vice principal for the senior year, took the stage. Their speeches were nothing new. "Students, we're here today for this motivational assembly. The main goal is to…" Nathan had heard such clichés too many times. He was numb to them. He even wondered if all school leaders nationwide gave the same speech. Why couldn't they learn from someone like the committee chair? "Everything is vibrant and flourishing, right before our eyes." Now, that sounded better. When the school leaders finished, it was time for the student representative to lead everyone in taking the pledge. The student chosen to lead the pledge was from Class One, who had scored over 680 points in the third semester's e