ESM Names 2 Valedictorians for Class of 2024

East Syracuse Minoa Central High School has two Valedictorians this year in the Class of 2024: Emma Broton & Leslie Yakubu.

Emma Broton is the daughter of Shawn and Wendy Broton. She plans to major in biological sciences while minoring in business administration at the University of South Carolina.

She swims for the Syracuse Chargers. At ESM she is the Class of 2024 Treasurer and DECA Co-President. She participates in SkillsUSA, Youth Development and Leadership, Math League, Chemistry Club, National Honor Society, National Business Honor Society and National Technical Honor Society.

“I get my inspiration from my parents because of the effort they put into setting me up for success. They have always been my biggest supporters and I have them to look up to as people who use what they are passionate about to make an impact. Looking up to my mom working as a nurse practitioner is the reason that I want to work in the medical field so that I can have the opportunity to positively impact patients as she has,” Emma said. 
Achieving Valedictorian, Emma noted, came from “... enjoying the classes that I chose to take and spending time to receive good grades while also balancing other activities that I like doing.”

Outside of school she is a child care assistant at the YMCA, a swimming lessons teacher and a volunteer for Faith Formation Programs.

Leslie Yakubu is the daughter of Victoria and Yakubu Fudak. She plans to major in mechanical engineering at Rice University.

In high school, she has been involved in Life's Next Gen (Youth Group), Spartan Stage, Marching Band, Chamber Choir, Field Hockey, Science Olympiad, Model UN, Math League, Masterminds, Chemistry Club, National Honor Society and Tri-M Music Honor Society.

Leslie said, “I get my inspiration from my family. My little brother is so full of energy and excitement. My big brother is affectionate to everyone he comes across. My mom has so much on her plate and manages to balance it with abundant love. And my dad taught me how to learn from a very young age and still teaches me.”

To achieve her ranking of Valedictorian, Leslie said, “It took a lot of late nights, a bunch of tough classes, and a good amount of tears. However, it also took a supportive community and awesome teachers.”

She works part time as a cashier at her local Walgreens. She also volunteers at her church on the media team and the worship team on Sunday mornings.