Jericho High School's Class of 2026 has a record-breaking 21 valedictorians

At Jericho High School, they’re coming up aces.

The high school's Class of 2026 has 21 valedictorians — a record for the school known for its high-achieving students. The nearly two dozen seniors earned the honor by getting A-pluses in all of their classes during their high school career.

"It's an incredible achievement," the school's co-principal, Brian Cummings, told Newsday on Monday. "And we’re really proud of them. For them to have this sustained success over years is an incredible accomplishment."

Jericho High School, which uses an unweighted GPA formula, has become known in recent years for its multiple valedictorians. There were nine in 2025, 13 in 2024 and 15 in 2023 — the old record, before this year's class shattered it.

The valedictorians this year range from an aspiring art museum director headed to Princeton University to the founder of a nonprofit dedicated to "empowering women and girls in their healthcare journeys." 

Tommy Yuan, 18, said that to reach the top of his class, he needed to learn how to juggle his studies with extracurriculars like competitive swimming.

"It's definitely a lot of work ... but it was definitely doable," he said. "Once you get your time all organized and all your activities spaced out, you can really focus and set aside time to study for your tests and your homework."

Franklin Lee, 17, plans to study artificial intelligence at Stanford University in the fall. He credited the support he received from his fellow valedictorians for his academic success.

"It's a really nice community," he said. "Being around valedictorians, you kind of get motivation to do the work and also pursue your interests as well."

For Anish Pahari, 18, achieving A-pluses in every class required focus and a good work ethic.

"It took a lot of discipline and a lot of time and effort," said Pahari, who plans to study math and finance at the University of Virginia.

Andrew Han, 18, agreed.

"It has taken a lot of dedication and sacrifice. Whether it's sacrificing your social lives with your friends or sometimes not being able to do as many outside activities, it’s given me self-motivation and support from those around me," said Han, who is headed to Yale University. He said he plans to study global affairs and enter the field of diplomacy.

Derek Kwong, 17, said being valedictorian was never his goal. But, he said, excelling in challenging classes has built good habits that he will apply to his studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he plans to major in computer science.

"I think being a valedictorian is a great honor, and even though it's like 20 other kids, I think this really shows like how driven and motivated so many of us are," Kwong said. “I think all my classmates are so motivated, and that really put me in a great position to be successful throughout high school."