Valedictorians are chosen for CEU’s 69th graduating class
Two College of Eastern Utah students with perfect 4.0 grade point averages were selected as valedictorians for the 69th graduating class, announced Vice President of Academics and Provost Mike King.
Barbara Killion Strate was born and raised in Southern California. She came to Utah in 1970 where she met and later married her husband, Gene Strate of Price. For 20 years she taught piano and was active in the Utah Music Teachers Association, having served as president of the local chapter.
Two College of Eastern Utah students with perfect 4.0 grade point averages were selected as valedictorians for the 69th graduating class, announced Vice President of Academics and Provost Mike King.
Barbara Killion Strate was born and raised in Southern California. She came to Utah in 1970 where she met and later married her husband, Gene Strate of Price. For 20 years she taught piano and was active in the Utah Music Teachers Association, having served as president of the local chapter.
In 1998 she pursued a career in dental assisting and developed an interest in becoming a dental hygienist. This interest brought her back to college where she maintains a perfect GPA while continuing her employment. She and her husband Gene, a 1970 CEU graduate, are the parents of four daughters, three of whom graduated from CEU and one son who is currently enrolled. Raymond Joseph Smithson is the son of Joseph Smithson and Carol Woodburn of Orem. A graduate of Timpview High School in 2001, he was named to both the Utah All-State and the northern Utah 4A All-Star baseball team. He also played on a baseball team representing New Mexico in the 2001 Connie Mack World Series.
While at CEU, Smithson serves as the vice president of the CEU business club and was a national qualifier in the 2007 Utah DEX business competition. He attends CEU on an academic scholarship and maintains a perfect GPA. He plans to further his education at the University of Utah while maintaining an academic scholarship.
