Vinton County High School names five honor graduates for Class of 2026

Vinton County High School’s five honor graduates for the Class of 2026 reflect a senior class with one foot in Vinton County and the other aimed at colleges, careers and civic life beyond it.

The top academic honors went to three valedictorians, Hope Goodson, Haylee LeMay and Hollie Swaim, with Trason Bay named salutatorian. Arianna Ball was recognized as the top-ranking VCHS student attending Buckeye Hills Career Center, giving the class a mix of traditional academic and career-tech pathways that matters in a county where schools are a major pipeline for future teachers, nurses, engineers, tradespeople and local leaders.

The graduation program is set for 7 p.m. Friday, May 15, in the VCHS gymnasium, and the district calendar lists commencement from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. that evening. A separate district events page also shows a May 3 cap-and-gown event for seniors, underscoring that the final stretch of the school year is already underway. The district’s 2025-2026 calendar runs through June 4, with the fourth nine-weeks grading period ending May 29.

Goodson, the daughter of Tina and Donnie Goodson, has stacked up leadership roles that stretch from class officer posts as a sophomore, junior and senior to work in BETA, FCCLA, Drug Free Club of America and National Honor Society. She also served as treasurer of the Drug Free Club, president of National Honor Society, took part in Quiz Bowl, has been a seven-year member of the Hamden Engineers 4-H Club and logged more than 70 community-service hours. She plans to attend Miami University’s Honors College to study biochemistry.

LeMay, daughter of Stacy Thomas and the late Jeff LeMay, paired academics with athletics, earning four varsity letters in football and basketball cheerleading. She also participated in French Club, Drug Free Club, Journalism, Quiz Bowl and National Honor Society leadership. She plans to major in early childhood and elementary education at Ohio University, a path that could eventually feed back into school systems like Vinton County’s.

Swaim, daughter of Jeannie Barry and Steven Swaim, has been active in cross country, track, cheerleading, French Club, BETA, Journalism, FCA, Viking Players, Quiz Bowl, National Honor Society, 4-H and Outreach North Youth Group. She plans to study environmental science at The Ohio State University.

Bay, son of Brandi and Michael Robarge and Brent Bay, has been involved in National Honor Society, Drug Free Club, senior class leadership, cross country, Athens Bobcats hockey, the Independent Anglers bass-fishing team, CCP and 4-H. He plans to major in civil engineering at Ohio University.

Together, the five honorees show how Vinton County students are moving through classrooms, athletic fields, farms, service clubs and career centers on the way to fields that will shape the county’s future, even if some of those graduates leave for campus first.