Early College top duo worked hard to retain rankings

BY TODD MARTIN SPECIAL TO THE HERALD

The top two graduates of the Killeen ISD Early College High School Class of 2022 happened into the specialized high school and finished at the top academically.

“I was happy to find out,” valedictorian Devin Xiao said of his status at the top of the class. “I was proud of myself. I had been (ranked) two or three at times.”

After attending Saegert Elementary School and Manor Middle School in Killeen, he began high school at Ellison, but a counselor there suggested that the Early College, mixing two years of college with high school might be a good fit.

In the beginning, Xiao said, he was most interested in the fact that KISD provided transportation to the Early College campus on Fort Hood. “They gave me a bus,” he said.

The four years at Early College ended up providing more than a free ride to school. “I made a lot of friends here,” he said. “I’m glad I came.”

The Killeen ISD Early College High School Class of 2022 valedictorian is Devin Xiao and the salutatorian is Jade Garcia. The graduation is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 25 at the Bell County Expo Center.

Salutatorian Jade Garcia attended Cavazos Elementary School and Union Grove Middle School.

She was interested in Early College from the beginning of high school, but her application was originally waitlisted.

At the time she was about to finish middle school, her soldier dad, Jose Garcia, as stationed at El Paso apart from the family.

“My dad was deployed in El Paso and my mom was here,” she said. “We decided that if I got in here (at Early College), I would stay.” If her application had been denied, Garcia said she would have moved in with her dad in El Paso.

Like Xiao, Garcia has found a home at the smaller, academically focused high school that allows students to take Central Texas College courses concurrently with high school classes.

“It’s been a struggle,” the salutatorian said. “We’ve made memories and lots of friends. We are already planning to get together for a

Congratulations, Early College Class of 2022!