The Top 10 seniors in Dyersburg High School's Class of 2008 pose with Oscar at the school's annual Honors Banquet on Thursday evening. From left, front, fourth-ranked Carol Beth Jones, daughter of Johnny Jones and Rebecca Rogers; fifth-ranked Lisa Tarr, daughter of Brian and Donna Tarr; valedictorian Sarah Houston, daughter of Jim and Anne Houston; salutatorian Cole Smith, son of Tim and Connie Smith; back, third-ranked Brandon Smith, son of Steve and Judy Smith; sixth-ranked Ryan Sawyers, son of Ricky and Karen Sawyers; seventh-ranked Ethan Mulvaney, son of Keaton and Teri Mulvaney; eighth-ranked JoAnna Henderson, daughter of John and Angela Henderson; ninth-ranked Joseph LeMay, son of Joe and Beth LeMay; and 10th-ranked Johnathan 'Beau' Liljenquist, son of John and Marilyn Liljenquist.

Titled, "The Honors," the Academy Awards theme was carried throughout the event from the giant Oscar and red carpet leading to the Commons to the statues presented to worthy students at the event.

Sarah Houston, daughter of Jim and Anne Houston, will serve as valedictorian of the senior class, nudging Cole Smith, son of Tim and Connie Smith, out of the spot by not even 2/10 of a point.

Academic boosters Debbie Ford, Jane Bradshaw, Becky Hamilton and Amy Heckethorn were surprised with Oscars, themselves, for their banquet decorations and work throughout the school year.

"The competition is so keen," said DHS Principal Mickey Mahon. "One missed question on a test, a missed point here and there can make the difference be-tween number 10 and the number one spot. That's about all that separates them. The finals of the Academy Awards don't get any finer than this group."

The remaining Top 10 senior classmates for the Class of 2008 include third-ranked Brandon Smith, fourth-ranked Carol Beth Jones, fifth-ranked Lisa Tarr, sixth-ranked Ryan Sawyers, seventh-ranked Ethan Mulvaney, eighth-ranked Joanna Henderson, ninth-ranked Joseph LeMay and 10th-ranked John "Beau" Liljenquist.

The evening's featured speaker, Tamara Gauldin, was worthy of an Oscar, herself, as she advised students in each grade how to answer their call from Dyersburg High School and move toward a successful future. Bringing her luggage on stage with her, Gauldin used a compass, map, passport, cell phone and her DHS Honors jacket to illustrate the lesson.

Principal Mickey Mahon recognizes teachers retiring from DHS this spring at the school's annual Honors Banquet. From left, Dale Milner, Joli Ridens, Mahon and Cathy McCanless.

DHS Principal Mickey Mahon honored Academic Booster of the Year Debbie Ford, and fellow Booster Club members Jane Bradshaw, Amy Heckethorn and Becky Hamilton for their service on the banquet and throughout the year. He also honored retiring DHS teachers Cathy McCanless, Dale Milner and Joli Ridens.

Students earning Honor Roll and Golden Honor Roll were also presented awards at the ceremony.

Golden Honor Roll recipients were seniors Michael Berardi, Megan Cariker, Whitney Erickson, Brian Griffin, JoAnna Henderson, Sarah Houston, Stephanie Johnson, Carol Beth Jones, Sierra Kattentidt, Joseph LeMay, Beau Liljenquist, Melissa McCoy, Ethan Mulvaney, Lauren Paschall, Allison Petty, Brittney Rummells, Ryan Sawyers, Brandon Smith, Cole Smith, Johnnie Mack Stephens, Colby Stinebaugh, Lisa Tarr and David Young; juniors Marilauren Anderson, Becky Austin, Hannah Chapman, Amber Donaldson, Emily Evans, Adam Ford, Andrew Ford, Jake Gulledge, Savannah Harbin, Patrick Heckethorn, Kristen Kerr, Andrew Lay, Marcus Marotti, Keith McGuire, Erin Naifeh, James Northcutt, Holly Owens, Jordan Pence, Alli Purvis, Mary Currin Viar, Ryan Wood and Mandy Yates; sophomores Todd Baker, Kaitlyn Davidson, Jessica Floyd, Cory Nunez, Lindsey Pillow, Kelcey Rose and Katie Taylor; and freshmen Hannah Austin, Michelle Bostic, Emma Caylor, Logan Collier, Winn Decker, Elizabeth Finley, Margo Jenkins, Savannah Johnson, Andrew Legan, Lauren Lewis, Ricky McCoy, Jack McGrail, Alex Porras, Madison Ricks and Hunter Todd.

'The Honors' featured speaker was worthy of an Oscar herself. Nashville attorney Tamara Gauldin brought her luggage on stage, along with a compass, a map, a passport and a cell phone to share wisdom with DHS students on how they should "answer their call." [Click to enlarge]

Freshman Honor Roll recipients included Steven Alford, Mary Jewels Baker, Bryce Beasley, Chris Berardi, Rickey Bernard, Mallory Brunson, Khyla Byars, Jonathan Canada, Michaela Chandler, Sarah Collins, Brandi Davis, Emily DiGirolamo, Kopper Harris, Eva Hayes, Brooke Hubbard, Ian Hunt, Amanda Jones, Ricky Kirby, Caleb Langley, Zack Little, Adam McCormack, Ashley Miles, Rebecca Moore, Marilyn Munoz, Paige Murray, Ian Nevills, Kilee Nunez, Kalli Parr, Kaitlin Paschal, Kyle Paschal, Shelby Pleasant, Maggie Renshaw, Ginny Roper, Megan Singleton, Heather Streckert, Steven Tarr, Rick VanSant, Caleb Williams and Micah Wright.

Sophomore Honor Roll recipients were Kathleen Alford, Caitlin Armstrong, Joseph Ball, Brandy Behrens, Anna Claire Bradshaw, Chase Brown, Will Bumpas, Karlisha Caldwell, Lauren Carter, Courtney Countess, Chris Cox, Joash Daniel, Shaw Dickerson, Di'Yana Fisher, Jacob Gaither, Jaylin Gardner, Amber Garner, Olivia Greenlee, Molly Herman, Lauren Hill, Hillary Hopgood, Anne Marie Hyman, Alex Jacobi, Samantha Joergens, Sterling Jowers, Chelsey King, Dominique Livingston, Tre' Mosley, Cason Nobles, Sarah Norville, Tyler Orr, Michael Pagan, Rekissa Pavlovsky, Parks Pennington, Erin Pierce, Alissa Plewa, Deanna Plewa, Jenna Richards, Lisa Riley, Tyler Roberts, Cory Smith, Sydnee Stafford, Avy Stansbury, Katelynn Summerset, Rachel Swetnam, Katie Turner, Collin White, Finley White, Price Whitnel, Mary Whitnel and Jayne Anne Wilkerson.

Junior Honor Roll recipients included Allyson Agee, Ian Alley, Kasey Blalock, Sara Beth Byars, Hannah Caylor, Brianna Clark, Matt Coker, Marci Coleman, Evan DiGirolamo, Joseph Durbin, Aaron Elam, Bobby Ellis, Sarah Epperson, Shellie Epperson, Kirsten Farrer, Blake Funderburk, Leah Jean Graham, Mollie Greenlee, David Grueser, Jordan Gunn, Becca Guthrie, James Guttery, Katie Hampton, Blake Hilgenkamp, Bryan Hill, Megan Hummer, Shelby Hutcherson, Madison Johnson, Karen Jones, Terra Jones, Williams Lay, Brittany Leonard, Jessica Light, Kayla Marberry, Chasity Maze, Kyle McGuire, Wes Newbill, Allison Palmer, Lindsay Pleasant, McKenzie Shankle, Micheal Singleton, Christopher Sorrell, Ashley Storey, Amber Townson, Kati Tucker, Kaitlyn Turney, Whitney VanSant, Courtney Wells and Kyle Youmans.

Senior Honor Roll recipients were Rachel Agee, Rachael Anderson, Courtney Beckley, Katherine Binkley, Allie Campbell, Rachel Carter, Whitney Carter, Matt Chandler, Kate Chaney, Tyler Childress, Corey Criswell, Caitlin Crocker, Erick Cunningham, Laura Czecholinski, Cole Dickerson, Katelin Dudley, Sarah Anne Edwards, Kelly Esienburger, Courtney Erickson, Maria Glover, Catherine Hamilton, Eniko Henderson, Joel Hudson, Brittany Jones, Victoria Jowers, Shelley Lemon, Ali McBride, Kayla McCanless, Kaleigh McDowell, Jazmine McElrath, Matt McGehee, John Mark Moody, Samantha Price, Jake Pruett, Josh Rhodes, Rebecca Riddick, Anna Robertson, John Schultz, Les Smith, Brooke Stegeman, Sarah Swetnam, Tacara Thompson, Trey Vernon, Levar Walker, Codi Warner, Kayla Whalen and Paige Whittle.