Salutatorian Mary O'Kane: Hard Work Pays Off

She doesn't know what her Grade Point Average is. And, frankly, Salutatorian Mary O'Kane doesn't really care.

"Even if I wasn't Salutatorian, I knew I worked hard and everyone was proud," said the 18-year-old Morris Township resident, who will be attending Tufts University in the fall for chemical engineering. "It's a huge honor, but it wasn't going to make or break my senior year."

About not knowing that GPA? "They brought and I in a few weeks ago and told us we were Valedictorian and Salutatorian," Mary said. "I never asked for my number. To me, the number doesn't mean a lot anymore. It really hasn't. It's about working hard and putting in the best effort I possibly could."

And, setting a good example for her six younger siblings.

"I put a lot of pressure on myself," Mary said. "I think knowing I left a good image at the high school and it trickled down to all my siblings. Having that legacy in the district–'oh, are you so and so's sibling?'–to have it positively impact our educational experience, it does feel good."

For Mary, everything has happened so fast. "It's actually surreal," she said. "I had been counting down [to graduation]. Then it came and I was like, 'wait it's over?'

"This is the last time I'll see a lot of my classmates for a long time, it's just kind of crazy," Mary added.

Before college, she will work as a swim instructor in summer camp, take some time off, hang out and just enjoy some time off.

All the hard work, long nights and stress of it all, Mary said, has paid off. And, it feels good.

"We did it. Now we get to go into the world," she said.