Smiles and hugs filled the Coronado High School front office after Principal Karin Mellina’s intercom address on May 29.
“Please excuse this interruption. I have a very important announcement to make: This year’s class of 2024 salutatorians are Andreana Frangos and Cate Gregory, and the class of 2024 valedictorian is Gabe Langevin. Congratulations to them.”
“We were all super excited,” Langevin said of the honor. “I couldn’t be more happy, more grateful.”
These students finished high school with 4.0 grade-point averages. Langevin took 13 Advanced Placement (AP) classes and graduated with a 4.57 weighted GPA. Taking 14 AP classes, Frangos earned a 4.61 weighted GPA. Gregory completed 14 AP classes and earned a 4.45 weighted GPA.
The anointing of salutatorians was just one highlight among many for seniors in the days leading up to graduation.
Wearing graduation regalia, they paraded through the elementary and middle schools in the annual memory walk, high-fiving students eager to follow in their footsteps.
“The CHS Faculty and Staff are extremely proud of Gabe, Cate, and Andreana for earning this prestigious academic achievement,” wrote Mellina in a statement. “These remarkable graduates have demonstrated a commitment to scholarship and service.”
Following senior awards and other festivities, the graduation ceremony on June 13 marks a turning point in Coronado for 252 graduates whose life journeys continue across different realms.
Math aficionado
Langevin, 17, will attend the Rochester Institute of Technology where he plans to study applied statistics.
“Whenever my mind wandered, I would just think about random numbers and how they connected,” said Langevin. “Math has always really been a great thing that I just love doing. …I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it.”
Born in Montreal, Canada, Langevin and his family moved to Coronado when he was 6 years old.
His passion for math and statistics is something he honed at the high school, but his love for learning has been evident since he was in the second grade.
Langevin said Jodi Judd, his former second grade teacher, and all his classmates made him feel right at home instantly during his first year in the district.
“I was not surprised to see that he was wearing a valedictorian sash,” wrote Judd, a teacher at Silver Strand Elementary School. “My current second graders had several questions for him about what that meant and he eloquently explained that they just have to do their best in school and when they graduate in 10 years it could be with honors. …I am so proud to see the kind, polite young man he has become!”
Beyond his family, Langevin said he also credits his success to teachers who have supported and inspired him throughout his academic journey.
Langevin said his favorite math class was AP Calculus BC with Elizabeth Castillo.
“It kind of felt like just one big family,” said Langevin. “It was always such a good time in that class. I always looked forward to it.”
Langevin also takes with him the memories of years-long friendships with whom he shared fun Friday afternoons either practicing with the Academic League club at lunchtime or playing volleyball and enjoying pizza at the beach after school.
“Always keep going, always keep learning. You never know when you’ll need something you might’ve not learned if you weren’t paying attention in class that day,” Langevin said. “Even if you do end up getting an ‘A,’ I think what you end up learning is more valuable.”
Pursuing a passion
At 18 years old, Frangos has reached a goal she dreamed about from a young age and set her mind to in eighth grade—to be a ‘Hotelie’ at the Ivy League in Ithaca, New York.
This year’s co-salutatorian joins the class of 2028 at Cornell University with plans to to pursue a degree in hotel administration at the Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration.
Frangos has dedicated the past four years to her studies, rowing, varsity rugby and work. Last year, she earned the Yale Book Award and Girl Scout Gold Award, which are prestigious recognitions celebrating outstanding students.
Despite being a top science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) student, Frangos said she further developed an interest for the hospitality industry through work experience.
“When I got the job at the Hotel Del this last summer as like a front agent and concierge, it was so awesome,” said Frangos. “You get to see people smile and it makes me so happy.”
Like the fictional protagonist Tiana in the animated 2009 film “The Princess and the Frog,” Frangos said she has always been fascinated by the hospitality sector.
“Her whole motto is, ‘You just got to keep working harder,’” said Frangos. “That’s been my motto since I was very little …‘You got to keep working harder and it’ll eventually come to you.’”
Frangos also credits Castillo, along with teachers Sandra Davis and Bill Lemei, for their support.
“[Ms. Castillo] she was like, ‘Yes! It’s your dream school,’” said Frangos about her acceptance to Cornell. “Mr. Lamei, out of all people, was the first one to say, ‘I’m so happy you’re going into this because you have found your passion.’”
Besides loving hotel work, Francis said, she has a second motive for going into hospitality: “I want to see more of the world.”
Through eight years of school in Coronado, Frangos said she will always have the connections made with fellow students.
“There’s very few people that I can turn to and say, ‘I have never had a class with (you).’ We’re so close to each other and it’s been so awesome,” added Frangos.
Environmental changemaker
Gregory, who will be a freshman at the University of California Los Angeles this fall, encourages fellow graduates to follow guidance from a song in one of her favorite movies, “Finding Nemo:” “Just Keep Swimming.”
Like all 2024 CHS graduates, Gregory, 18, started high school in the midst of a global pandemic.
An AP environmental science class, her internship with Emerald Keepers, and a science writing internship at UCSD were key for Gregory’s college plans to study environmental science.
“When we were with Emerald Keepers advocating for the single-use plastic ban, …when I spoke at city council, I feel like doing that, I really enjoyed it and I also just felt like it was really important,” said Gregory. “That was a moment where I was like, “Oh, I want to continue doing this type of thing in the future.’”
Gregory was also part of the Coronado School of the Arts (CoSA) dance conservatory and a member of multiple community service clubs, including the Interact and Junior Optimist clubs.
The belonging expressed by her classmates is another sentiment Gregory echoes.
“All of the teachers and faculty are super supportive,” said Gregory, who moved to Coronado in her freshman year. “The students all really care about each other.”
Gregory said two of her favorite teachers were Sandra Davis and Joshua Chao.
“Collectively, this group of students is as well-rounded as any that I have taught,” wrote Chao in an email about the three students who went through his English 10 Honors class. “I had the privilege of exposing them to literature and pushing their thinking in areas where they did not necessarily feel confident or comfortable. To their credit, they each expanded their skills and repertoire while in my classroom and leveraged their unique strengths to succeed.”
And while graduation jumbles bittersweet emotions, Gregory happily looks forward to the next chapter.
“I definitely feel prepared after CHS,” she said. “I’m most excited about meeting new people and also just having more independence.”
This year’s CHS graduation ceremony took place at Niedermeyer Field on June 13.
