2026 Salutatorian: Joshua Jones
What accomplishment are you most proud of from your high school years, and why?
I would say getting to perform in Carnegie Hall with our orchestra. It was this year, senior year, and it just felt that it was tying everything together for what I’ve been doing for the past seven years.
Was there a teacher, mentor, or experience that had a major impact on your success?
Our band director, Mr. Hermann. He taught me that I could do whatever I wanted. He taught me to have passion in what I am doing. It’s difficult to put it into words. Sometimes, it would be the words that he would say, sometimes I could see how passionate he was about what he was doing, and that inspired me to find my own passion.
What’s something people might be surprised to learn about you outside of academics?
I am a big fan of baseball. I don’t play it, but I like to watch it. For a long time, my favorite team was the Miami Marlins, now, it’s the Rays.
How did you balance schoolwork with extracurriculars, jobs, sports, or personal life?
Whenever I had time, the first thing that came to my mind, I would do that, and I would keep going. At one point, I was making lists to keep track of everything, but I didn’t follow them most of the time. I would dedicate weekends to schoolwork and after school to focus on myself. I would do all of my schoolwork on Sundays, which I guess for some people is a day of rest, but I would use Saturdays as my day of rest.
What was the most challenging moment of high school, and how did you overcome it?
Class wise, it was probably taking AP Chemistry, but I couldn’t say I overcame that; I just survived. It was just all of the concepts felt new. In most of the classes I have taken, the concepts were familiar or they built upon other classes. AP Chemistry kind of did, for the first two minutes. I guess I overcame it because of the people in the class, my friends; I probably couldn’t have made it through the class without them.
If you could give one piece of advice to incoming freshmen, what would it be?
Find something that you enjoy and that you’re passionate about, and not something that other people would like. That’s how you stay true to yourself find what you want. I found the clarinet; I played piano beforehand, and I was playing it because my parents wanted me to, but I found clarinet and that’s what I wanted to do. That helped me throughout all of school.
What are your plans after graduation, and what excites you most about the future?
After graduation, I am going to sleep all summer and probably get a job. Then, I’m going to go to USF. I was accepted to major in electrical engineering, though I’m considering going into music, maybe music education. I’m really torn between the two because of how I feel when I perform, but I also really like sciences, especially physics and physical sciences. In college, I’m excited to play in the Herd of Thunder Marching Band. I know a lot of people in it, and they all say it’s really fun. I’m going to miss [Durant] marching band, but I’m excited for this new opportunity.
Looking back, what do you think truly defines a successful high school experience?
Everyone’s idea of success is different; I just feel like I can’t fully answer this for anyone else. I can answer it for myself, but not for other people.
