News
Savina Rizova '04 of Sofia, Bulgaria, sporting a perfect 4.0 grade point average, has been named valedictorian for the Class of 2004.
This marks the second consecutive year that the valedictorian has hailed from not only the same hometown, but the same high school -- the First English Language School in Sofia, the capital of the Balkan nation of Bulgaria.
The fact that Bulgarians have earned the distinction of valedictorian two years in a row made this year's honor especially meaningful for Rizova, who was friends with last year's valedictorian Lactchezar Benatov '03.
"I was very happy, especially because I am going to be the second consecutive valedictorian from my lovely high school," Rizova said of hearing the news.
"It also feels like a great honor because Dartmouth requires a lot of hard work, persistence and dedication, and there are many smart people around," she added.
Rizova, who will speak as part of Sunday's graduation ceremony, double majored in economics and mathematics, considered to be two of the tougher majors at the College.
Rizova credits her self-discipline and intellectual curiosity for helping her "pull through the difficulties" of balancing friends, a social life, extracurricular activities and, of course, academics.
She said, however, that she never had the goal of becoming valedictorian, or getting straight-As, but only wanted to do the best she could in each of her subjects, be it a major or a distributive class.
Part of that drive to succeed in all her classes perhaps comes from her identity as an international student.
"The fact that they offer admission and usually full financial aid is such a great honor that [international students] feel morally obligated to prove that Dartmouth has not gone wrong by picking us, and that we can indeed contribute to Dartmouth both academically and socially," Rizova said.
She praised the College's international student programs such as the International Student Office, and also Dartmouth's policy toward financial aid for international students.
"I really want to thank Dartmouth for the determination to provide international students with full financial aid in order to enable them to come here and develop their potential," Rizova said.
Rizova has earned six academic citations in mathematics and economics, and in April she received an Undergraduate Research Award from the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences.
Despite her numerous academic achievements, Rizova pointed out that perhaps the thing she will treasure most from Dartmouth is the relationship with her best friend April Mohns '03, who she met on the Madrid FSP.
