Barclay, Holdo share valedictorian honors, Alanis is salutatorian

The honor of Bonsall High School valedictorian for 2020 was shared, and recipients Sara Barclay and Heather Holdo said they were both happy to share it with each other.

"I think it's been an amazing achievement. I'm very excited that I got to do that with my friend," Barclay said.

"We have known each other since sixth grade, and we're best friends," Holdo said.

"We both decided to be valedictorians together. We took the same classes," Holdo said. "We actually had planned on getting it together. I'm glad it worked out that way."

Taking the same classes in high school meant that neither Barclay nor Holdo would have an advantage over the other in their quest to share the school's top GPA. An extra point is awarded for advanced classes including Palomar College classes for which students receive both high school and community college credit.

"I took a lot of weighted classes," Holdo said.

"I'm really glad that we were allowed to coordinate our classes," Barclay said.

"It's awesome that the two girls have worked very hard to be honored together," Bonsall principal Jason Fowler said.

"I think that was pretty cool. It was something that I really wanted to do," Barclay said of being named valedictorian.

"I've worked hard over the last four years. It's been a goal since my freshman year," Holdo said. "I'm glad I was able to accomplish that."

Both Barclay and Holdo received "A" grades in all of their courses.

"Since freshman year we've been doing really well in our classes," Holdo said.

"It was a lot of hard work, but it definitely paid off," Barclay said of her perfect GPA. "I'm glad I can say that I did that."

Barclay and Holdo each had a GPA of 4.5763. Bonsall High School also named Austin Alanis as the class of 2020 salutatorian; Alanis compiled a GPA of 4.5577 and also received an "A" grade in every class he took at Bonsall High School.

"They had taken a few more Palomar courses than I had," Alanis said.

Alanis also spent only three years at Bonsall High School; he attended Lejeune High School in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, as a freshman. Barclay lived in Redlands before transferring to Bonsall Elementary School when she was in fifth grade and attending Sullivan Middle School for three years. Holdo was born in Pasadena but has lived in Bonsall since she was 3 years old and was at Bonsall Elementary School for six years before her Sullivan and Bonsall High School activities. Alanis was 12 when the Marine Corps transferred his father to Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, from Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia; the family had lived in Stafford, Virginia, about 14 miles from Quantico before their move to North Carolina.

"It's a tremendous honor. I was blessed that they decided to include me as a salutatorian," Alanis said.

The school's policies for valedictorian and salutatorian honors require at least three years of Bonsall High School attendance but do not address a tie for the highest GPA.

"I'm very honored that they decided to extend the salutatorian title to me," Alanis said. "It's a real validating thing to have, to know that all the hard work over four years paid off."

Fowler noted that the assets of Barclay, Holdo, and Alanis are not limited to their academic accomplishments.

"Heather's a real leader among the senior class. She's very creative. She's very giving," Fowler said.

Barclay's support of other Bonsall students also impresses Fowler.

"She's very creative. She's very loving. She's one of those students that every kid in the school knows they can come to for moral support," Fowler said.

Generosity is one of the traits Fowler noted about Alanis.

"He's one of those guys who'd give the shirt off his back," Fowler said.

Alanis was an athlete and a musician as well as a student who excelled in the classroom.

"Austin is kind of the epitome of the school," Fowler said. "He's capable of just about anything."

Barclay and Holdo did not plan to attend college together, but both chose the University of California Los Angeles for academic reasons.

"Heather and I are both going to UCLA, because we have similar interests and career goals," Barclay said.

Holdo will major in business economics and plans either a minor in marketing or a double-major with business economics and marketing. She would like to go into business for herself but said she is contemplating a business administration position at least initially until she can start her own business.

"She's going to do great things at UCLA," Fowler said.

Barclay will also have an economics major but is unsure whether her post-graduation plans will include starting her own business.

"I want to see what exactly I would need to do that," she said.

"She has a great future ahead of her," Fowler said.

Alanis will also attend college near where he spent his early childhood. The College of William and Mary is in Williamsburg, Virginia, which depending on traffic is about 90 minutes to two hours from Stafford, Virginia. Alanis will be a kinesiology major.

"He's got a great future ahead of him," Fowler said.

"Teaching and coaching is my predominant choice right now," Alanis said. "I'm keeping my options wide-open."

Barclay and Holdo both received certificates in digital publishing from Palomar College. Holdo said she considers those to be her favorite classes.

"I took several graphic design courses through Palomar College," she said. "I thought all of those classes were really fun and exciting."

During their junior and senior years, Barclay and Holdo worked as interns for the Fallbrook/Bonsall Village News. Barclay cites her journalism activity as her favorite class.

"I really enjoyed journalism," she said.

Barclay said that graphic design was also at the top of the list for her favorite classes.

Danny Costa was one of the Bonsall High School cross-country coaches, along with Tamara Miller, for Alanis' senior season. Costa was also Alanis' world history teacher when Alanis was a sophomore, and Alanis said that was his favorite Bonsall High School class.

"That was just a very transformative class," he said. "I made a lot of friends, and I also learned a lot about life and school."

As a senior, Alanis placed seventh among Division V boys at the CIF San Diego Section cross-country meet to qualify for the state meet. Al Greene was the coach during Alanis' sophomore year when the Legionnaires placed third among the San Diego Section's Division V schools to qualify for the state meet as a team.

"My favorite Bonsall High School memory was my sophomore year when our team qualified for state as a team," Alanis said. "It really showed that people from Bonsall could do something special."

The two valedictorians have multiple favorite memories of their high school.

"I don't think I have a specific memory. I enjoyed Bonsall," Barclay said.

"I have a lot of memories. There's no specific one," Holdo said.

Holdo's favorite off-campus Bonsall High School memories include a field trip to the San Diego Safari Park. She also cited a notable classroom experience.

"We had to build a guillotine, which was not anything I'd ever expect to do, for our history class," she said.

All three have positive sentiments about attending a small high school.

"I loved that," Barclay said. "I felt a lot more comfortable and social."

"A lot of us really connect with the other people," Holdo said. "I think that really helped in becoming valedictorian and learning what I wanted to do."

"Bonsall's small size is its greatest asset and also its greatest liability. With a small school, I felt more connected to the student body and the teachers," Alanis said.

Alanis cited a limited number of sports teams as a small school's liability.

"I enjoyed going to Bonsall because it was a small school," Alanis said. "I liked it myself, but it's obviously not for everybody."

Barclay, Holdo and Alanis credit Bonsall High School with advancing their careers.

"I think it was an amazing opportunity. It's definitely going to help me be more ambitious in the future," Barclay said.

"I'm very grateful," Holdo said. "Throughout the years I've had a very good group of friends."

"I'm very grateful for the opportunities I got to experience at Bonsall High School," Alanis said.

Fowler said that this year's graduation ceremony will be virtual rather than with a full physical assembly.

"These kids really deserve more," he said. "They have been such great students."

Joe Naiman can be reached by email at [email protected].