On the evening of April 21, Durant held the 2022 Diamond Awards. At this ceremony many awards and community scholarships were given out to the prestigious students of Durant.

The ceremony started with a warm welcome from juniors, Jeremiah Woods and Kylie Morgan, followed by a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem.  Some of the Diamond Awards and scholarships given out included: AVID Scholarships, Principal Award, Culinary Awards, Capstone Awards, and the Holzbog Scholarship.

The students were very pleased and excited to be recognized for their hard work, which has now finally paid off. Senior Class Secretary Amari Fitts said: “I was super proud and felt as though all of my hard work has finally paid off. Not only was I proud of myself but super proud of my peers. It was beautiful to see everyone be acknowledged for their talents and accomplishments. Diamonds awards was absolutely amazing and overall gave me such happiness.”

India Dean, a member of AVID and the senior council, said, “It feels great! Knowing that I was one of the 13 kids in my class to achieve this scholarship gives me a sense of fulfilment. I thank Mrs. Mitchell for allowing and accepting me into her AVID family. It’s only up from here.”

Constance Mitchell, AVID teacher, had 13 of her students receive a scholarship from the AVID program, some of her students received more than one scholarship or award that night. She spoke very highly of every one of her students and each individual seemed very pleased to receive their scholarships.

As the ceremony came to a close, Gary Graham awarded the Principal’s Award to Senior Class President Tamia Williams.

Tamia shared: “I felt happy yet motivated because I believe that this is the only the beginning to my successes that I will achieve in my future after Durant High School.”

Family members, students, and teachers flooded the hallway to take pictures with each other and further celebrate the students’ accomplishments.

The 2022 school year is coming to an end and the Diamond Awards was another great moment in closing the final chapter for many seniors.

Congratulations to all of the students for their hard work towards getting the awards and scholarships they received.