As salutatorian for Clinton High, Kate Boundy’s biggest goal was reaching top of the charts
KATE BOUNDY
She said her best memories of her four years at Clinton High School, “revolve around band.”
The CHS salutatorian will attend ETSU next fall, majoring in music. She plays clarinet and tenor saxophone and ETSU, she said, has an excellent music program.
So, yes, music is a big part of her life.
“We were in a competition in 2019 where we had to play twice in one day. The first one didn’t go so well,” she said, laughing. “But before the evening’s performance our band director read a poem he had written, and it was funny. It put us in a different frame of mind, I guess. We nailed the second performance.”
It’s that memory — a Friday night football game and the “vibe” of playing during those games — that Boundy will always remember.
But getting to the top of the class took more than study and drive, and she said that being able to do what she cared about — playing music — helped during her four years.
“I was able to do what I cared about,” she said. “That was important. And now I get to keep doing what I love.”
Boundy said for those just starting their high school years, “Don’t be afraid to get involved. Challenge yourself. Find a path that will help shape your future.”
Boundy said she has “to polish” up her speech for graduation Friday night, but she will mainly talk about perseverance and the challenges that other classes have faced. She said the pandemic in 2020 offered new challenges for all the classes in high school at the time, but other generations have faced their own challenges as well.