A record that stood for 132 years has a new name on it.
Lela Moser, a student from Scottsboro, Alabama, became Scottsboro High School’s first Black valedictorian in the school’s 132-year history. She also graduated with a long list of academic and athletic honors during her senior year.
Along with being named valedictorian, Moser received the 2026 Balfour Award, the school’s highest non-academic honor. WAFF reported she was also named one of 52 Bryant-Jordan Scholar Athletes in Alabama.
Moser also received an Auburn Football Letterman Club Scholarship at a banquet in Birmingham. The recognition placed her among a select group of student-athletes honored for performance on and off the field.
In track and field, Moser became a seven-time state champion. Her 4 x 400 relay team broke a 13-year school record during her junior year, then surpassed it multiple times.
The same relay team later set a new state record at the 2026 AHSAA championships in Gulf Shores. Her performances consistently placed her among the top athletes in the state.
Moser was also accepted into Auburn University’s Samuel L. Ginn College of Engineering. She was named a Ginn Scholar, a program that covers tuition, fees, housing and meals for up to five years.
Her family includes Robert and Ledelphia Moser. Her uncle, Sam McCamey, was the first Black student to integrate Scottsboro schools and later played college basketball before being drafted by the Boston Celtics.
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