Eric Garcia poses in his cap and gown .
Eric Garcia plans to attend Georgia Tech to major in business administration and minor in computer science .
Eric Garcia stands beside his nephew , Raymon Garcia Jr ., on a soccer field .
Nobody ’ s ever going to say , ‘ Oh wow , you were just salutatorian .’ So , I aimed to keep my grades up and maintain my spot , and I ’ ve just strived to do so throughout my high school career ,” Garcia explained . “ I ’ m not a perfectionist . People talk about doing the bare minimum . I ’ d like to say that I do the bare maximum . I do efficient and quality work . People say that it ’ s very difficult to achieve this kind of award or standing within our student community , and in a lot of ways it is . But it ’ s really about putting your mind to something . A lot of people will say , ‘ Man , I don ’ t want to complete that assignment .’ But what ’ s the harm in doing it ? That time is going to pass regardless .”
Garcia ’ s academic success was not solely limited to traditional high school classes such as Advanced Placement physics and AP calculus . In addition to earning salutatorian , he was also recently recognized for completing a full 30 hours of college credit at Southern Regional Technical College , where he excelled at courses such as macroand microeconomics , American literature and
public speaking – a feat he managed to accomplish through the dual enrollment program offered at Colquitt County High .
“ The dual enrollment program through Colquitt County allows you 30 free hours . If you maximize on that , any student can capitalize on its full efficacy , but it ’ s just about taking that initiative . You ’ re getting college-level work credit hours that are free , and I think it ’ s great preparation for your next chapter in life ,” he explained .
Throughout high school , as late summer gave way to the fall season , Garcia could be found fully engaged in another of his passions – soccer . He played for the United Futbol Academy in Tifton and served as captain of the Packers soccer team for the past three years . This past season brought championships to each team , according to Garcia .
“ This last year we went out with a bang , we won the Georgia Premier League . We beat out 10 other teams . There ’ s a break around Christmas … and then school soccer picks up . This year [ the Packers ] also went out with a bang – it has just
We ’ re farmers . And that life , it ’ s a laborious life . You ’ re always doing something . During school I work minimally , not too much . As soon as summer starts , I ’ m working .”
26 MoultrieScene JULY 2023