Published on 5/14/2008 in Gtowntimes.com
written by Scott Harper/Times

Mother's Day was extra special for Teresa Freeman, as she watched her daughter, Christy Wall, graduate at the top of her class at Columbia College Sunday.

Graduating summa cum laude - earning a 4.0 all four years - was no small feat, since there were more than 200 people in her class.

Wall, Georgetown High School's 2004 valedictorian, majored in early childhood education.

She said when she began college, she "set out to do her best" but had no idea her best also would be the school's best.

"I was shocked and it was very humbling," said Wall, the daughter of Randall Wall and stepdaughter of Lynn Freeman.

Wall had a jump-start on her college career when she began because of the Advanced Placement (AP) courses offered at Georgetown High. When she was at GHS, the school only offered three AP courses and Wall took them all, scoring fours and fives in all three. Because of that, she was able to begin college as a sophonore and go on to graduate with honors.

GHS Principal Dr. Mike Cafaro said Wall's achievements is a testimony about what students in his school can accomplish.

"She has always been driven by success and is very goal-oriented," Cafaro said of Wall. "(What she has done) is a validation that Georgetown High meets the needs of all students. Our top students can compete with any top students from anywhere in the country."

Unlike many college graduates, Wall will not have to spend time looking for a job. She has already been hired to teach first grade at Green Sea-Floyds Elementary School in Horry County beginning in the fall.

She said she applied in both Georgetown and Horry counties but fell in love with Green Sea after her initial visit.

She said it always has been her desire to teach kids when their educational foundation is being formed.

"I believe the younger ages are the most crucial," Wall said.

Wall's future will include teaching, but she hopes to do a lot of traveling, something she found out she really enjoyed while in college.

One of her class trips was to South Africa for a political science course.

"It really opened my eyes and showed me there is a lot more out there than I could have imagined. It makes me really appreciate what we have," Wall said.

Another trip, as part of a course on religion, was taken to Greece in 2006. Last year, Wall accompanied her classmates to Helsinki, Finland.

Wall said she knows she will be at Green Sea-Floyds for at least two years because she is part of the Assisting, Developing and Evaluating Professional Teaching (ADEPT) Program, which takes that long to complete.

After that, she said she may try to move into the administrative field.

As for having the privilege of being able to graduate on Mother's Day, Wall said that made it even more special.

"It could not have been a better Mother's Day in my opinion," she said.