Notre Dame’s first Black valedictorian

Katie Washington, a biological sciences major from Gary, Indiana, has been named valedictorian of the 2010 University of Notre Dame graduating class. She is the first African-American student to hold that title. Washington, who earned a 4.0 grade point average, has conducted research on lung cancer and performed genetic studies on the mosquito that carries dengue and yellow fever. Upon graduation, she plans to pursue a joint M.D./Ph.D program at Johns Hopkins University.