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Pearland ISD valedictorians outline college plans, extracurricular achievements
Summary
On the district's Building Blocks podcast, Pearland ISD valedictorians from Dawson, Pearland and Turner high schools described their college destinations, leadership roles and major extracurricular successes that helped shape their high school careers.
Superintendent Berger hosted the Building Blocks podcast episode featuring Pearland ISD's three class of 2025 valedictorians, who discussed where they are headed after graduation and how extracurriculars factored into their success.
Lydia Greer, Turner College and Career High School valedictorian, told the superintendent, "I'm in FFA... and I'm going into plant and soil science." Caden Vo, Pearland High School valedictorian, said, "I'm going to NYU to major in business with a focus in finance." Dawson High School valedictorian Patrick Hughes said, "I will be going to Rice University and majoring in biosciences on the pre med track at Rice."
The students emphasized that leadership and sustained involvement outside the classroom complemented their academics. Greer described serving as FFA chapter president and competing in public speaking and related events. Vo credited years in academic decathlon for both team and individual success — "We were third overall as a team. I was second overall, total" — and described helping raise the program's performance and medal count. Hughes listed multiple activities, including serving as student body president, captain of the UIL current events team and competing in Future Problem Solvers and DECA; he noted placing fourth individually at the state UIL current events competition.
The podcast also highlighted team achievements. Hughes said his Future Problem Solvers team went to the international competition and finished fourth in the world in their division; Vo described his academic decathlon team increasing its medal tally substantially and finishing third overall. The students said those experiences taught time management, public speaking and leadership.
All three agreed that the path to valedictorian required sustained effort and organizing priorities around academics and activities. Greer said family expectations and a steady focus on scholarships motivated her; Vo credited his father's example as a first-generation immigrant. Hughes said he aimed to "put my best effort" into each class and learn from setbacks.
Pearland ISD invited listeners to graduation at NRG where the students will deliver valedictory addresses; the superintendent closed the episode by congratulating the students and thanking them for representing the district.
Details from the episode indicate district seniors combined high academic ranks with leadership roles and competitive extracurricular records; the students named Rice University, New York University and Sam Houston State University among their postsecondary destinations.
