Mission accomplished for top Black Hawks

Grafton High School valedictorian Josie Knepp and salutatorian Alani Walls each said they set graduating at the top of their class as a goal.

Knepp, the daughter of Kelly and James Knepp, said she knew she ranked high in her class during her freshman and sophomore years, but after she found out she was first in the class she “just wanted to keep my grades up then.”

Walls, the daughter of Carrie and Fred Walls, said she thought it would be cool to graduate at the top of her class even as a freshman.

“I started putting in a lot more effort into my classes,” she said.

It paid off. The two balanced a challenging class schedule that included a large number of Advanced Placement classes with extracurriculars to end their senior year at the top of their class.

Knepp had one academic achievement few seniors realize — she was one of two Grafton graduates to receive a perfect 36 on the ACT college-entrance exam. It’s an achievement only realized by about .22% of those taking the exam.

“Weirdly enough, I kind of enjoy standardized tests,” she said.

Knepp took AP classes in literature and language, chemistry, physics, calculus BC, U.S. history “and a few computer programming classes.”

“I definitely really like the sciences,” she said. “I like the numbers. I like things that have really specific rules and concrete outcomes.”

Her favorite classes were AP chemistry — “I like doing the labs,” she said — and AP English literature.

Walls also enjoys math and science, and her AP classes reflect it. She took human geography, pre-calculus and calculus BC, US history, macro and micro-economics, language and composition, chemistry, psychology, literature, biology and physics 1 and physics C: mechanics, as well as college math classes.

When asked what her favorite class was, Walls said, “now that I’m not taking it, AP chemistry. AP chemistry labs really, really stressed me out. It was a good experience, but I did not enjoy it at the time.

“While I was taking it, AP calculus BS (was my favorite). I had a lot of good people in my class.”

Walls balanced schoolwork with activities that included four years of high school and club hockey and cross country, track and a variety of clubs, including HOSA, a club for future health professionals.

She plans to go to the University of Pittsburgh for its pre-medicine program and earn a paramedic medicine certification. She would like to work as a paramedic for at least a year to gain clinical experience and make money to pay for medical school, ultimately becoming a doctor specializing in emergency medicine.

It’s a goal she set after reading “a cool memoir” about a paramedic, Walls said, adding, “I really admire people who work in hospitals.”

Knepp plans to attend Yale University and study chemical engineering, ultimately working on developing batteries or energy generation or storage.

“I think there’s a lot of innovation in the energy sector, and I’d like to work in an area with a lot of change. That’s what I find interesting,” she said.

Initially she didn’t plan to apply to an Ivy League school, she said, but after looking into Yale she found she liked their campus culture and approach to learning, which she said is an interdisciplinary approach.

Like Walls, Knepp has been balancing a challenging calendar that included participation in track, where she ran hurdles, and cross country, Student Council and Model United Nations. She also started the school’s rock climbing club while a sophomore as her justice program project.

She didn’t work much during the school year but has been working at Missing Links Golf Course in Mequon — even though she doesn’t golf.

For Knepp, the secret to doing well in school was simple.

“It was probably a mix of me liking school and, I think, me getting a little bit lucky,” she said. “I picked the right classes at the right time to keep me interested.”

And that, she said, is her advice to other students.

“I didn’t have to focus super hard. I was doing stuff I enjoy,” Knepp said. “Find what you enjoy or find a way to enjoy what you’re doing. I think it’s easier to do things if you like them, not because you’re looking for a specific outcome.”

And, she said, she’s grateful for the amazing teachers who helped her realize how much she liked the subjects they taught.

“I think that’s what made high school enjoyable, being able to do it with people who made it fun,” she said.

Walls said her advice to students is to be organized and prepared.

“Don’t treat any test as a foregone conclusion,” she said. “Just be prepared for everything.

“And take care of yourself. Take care of your whole self.”

Otherwise, she said, it’s too easy to lose sight of what’s important.