Oldenburg Academy's Class of 2023 Valedictorian hails from Shelby County

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A random mention a few years ago by her father put an idea into Madelyn Henry’s mind. And when it came time to start planning for her future, that idea of becoming a pharmacist started coming into focus.

“At the time, I really didn’t want to do it,” said Henry. “Two years ago, I started researching what (pharmacy) was about and I got interested in it. I started finding schools for it at the end of my junior year.”

About that same time, Henry, a Shelby County resident, learned she was a top-five student at Oldenburg Academy. One year later, Henry received a phone call informing her she was the Class of 2023 Valedictorian.

The next step for Henry is to study Pharmacy at Butler University in Indianapolis.

“When I toured the campus, I honestly fell in love with it,” said Henry of her Butler visit. “It was so beautiful. I got to shadow a student there who is in the Pharmacy program. I got to see everything from her perspective too.

“And then they have a Pharmacy camp I went to for a day and I got to see all the classrooms and professors. It solidified it I guess.”

Henry also considered Purdue University but liked the smaller-school feel of Butler – a fact not lost on her after attending Oldenburg Academy following four years of being a homeschool student.

“I wanted to go to a regular high school,” she said. “I think (my mother) would have homeschooled me through it but I really wanted to experience high school.

“Oldenburg Academy was a good transition. It’s a tiny school. I just really liked OA. The campus is really pretty. All the teachers there are really amazing.”

The personal experiences Henry had at Oldenburg Academy are what will stick with her the most as she moves on to Butler.

“Honestly, the people. I got close with the teachers and my friends there,” said Henry. “I think our average class size there was like 10 people. It was really nice to be able to go into a teacher’s room pretty much anytime to ask a question. Everyone knows who you are. I will miss that aspect.”

While at Oldenburg Academy, Henry was part of the girls soccer program, a student manager for the girls basketball team, and a hurdler with the track and field program. She also participated in several school clubs and was a member of the National Honor Society.

Henry, the daughter of Brad and Miranda Henry, will spend the rest of the summer enjoying some down time. She just recently returned with her family from a two-week vacation in Ireland and England.

“That was really fun,” she said. “My dad always wanted to go.”

That followed a March school-sponsored trip to Spain.

“That was an amazing seven or eight days,” she said. We got to go to four different cities.”

Now, in a little over a month, Henry will officially move in to a Butler dormitory and start a brand new adventure.

“I am getting really excited,” she said.

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