On Jan. 5, 37 graduates from the International Baccalaureate program returned to Bellaire High School to receive their IB diplomas. Principal Michael Niggli and IB Coordinator Ann Linsley welcomed and recognized the former students and their parents.

After seniors in the IB program take their qualifying exams in May, these tests are graded in the international community and results are released in July. Official diplomas aren’t available until September, and by then, the graduated students are no longer in high school. Because of this, Linsley hosts the ceremony over winter break.

“I’ve been the IB coordinator for 24 years, so I’ve done this over and over and every time, I love seeing my former students,” Linsley said. “They’ve really become young adults and now they have to make actual adult decisions and think about future goals for their next chapter of life.”

When the students return for this ceremony, they visit their former teachers and reconnect with their classmates.

“It was great to see everyone,” freshman at Rice University Nina Wallach said. “I’ve seen a lot of my IB friends since graduation, but I hadn’t seen any of the teachers, so it was good to catch up with them.”

The IB program is among the most rigorous tracks offered to high school students, and the official diploma certificate is a recognition of their hard work.

“It’s a humongous accomplishment,” Linsley said. “Less than 7% of the world’s high school students actually complete an IB diploma. The students do extremely well and they gain a lot from it, and it really pays off for college.”

The IB program aims to develop students with “excellent breadth and depth of knowledge” through extensive research and analytical papers.

“The amount of writing you have to do for the IB program definitely prepared me well for writing long papers within a short time span in college,” Wallach said. “My first semester of college wasn’t that stressful thanks to Bellaire and the IB program.”