Disney Channel sensation Selena Gomez is a high school graduate—and a positive role model for multitudes of tween and teen girls.
From People:
“Today I graduated from high school and got my diploma!!!!!” Gomez, 17, announced on her Facebook page Monday night.
But that wasn’t the only graduation the Wizards of Waverly Place actress celebrated.
“What are the odds: I also filmed my graduation ceremony in the upcoming movie Monte Carlo,” she wrote. “So in a weird way I was able to experience an official graduation, LOL.”
Yup, Gomez graduated twice in a short time period. Even better, she’s stoked enough to sound like a giddy seventeen-year-old on Facebook. I find this very refreshing. However, it does raise an excellent point—how many celebrities have not managed to pull off this accomplishment?
Avril Lavigne, Britney Spears, and Alyssa Milano are high school dropouts. Okay, it was fairly obvious that the three, who all left school to pursue performing careers, were headed for big time success, but still. Paris Hilton, Angelina Jolie, Lindsay Lohan, Jamie Lynn Spears, Alicia Silverstone, and Jessica Simpson also left school early, but did make earning their GED a priority. It’s kind of sad when Lindsay Lohan comes out on top of, say, Alyssa Milano on something, but you’ve kind of got to give the girl some credit on this one.
Some people feel that graduating from high school doesn’t really mean anything, that if you’re able to be happy and healthy and financially solvent, what difference does a high school diploma make? I totally disagree with that. A diploma is a benchmark, an emblem of a universal struggle faced by all American teenagers. I know a fair number of high school dropouts and, to a person, they all say they would have stuck with it if given the chance to do it over again.
A high school diploma doesn’t say anything about how smart a person is. It does, however, speak to strength of character, a willingness to meet a challenge, and perhaps most importantly in this day and age the feeling of accomplishment at finishing what you’ve started.
So congratulations, Selena Gomez. Congratulations on your upward-moving career. Congratulations on your high school diploma(s). And congratulations on living an experience that your fans can relate to. As a mother and as a high school teacher, I very much appreciate it.