Tulsa Honor Academy Seniors Announce College Plans At 'Signing Day' Ceremony

The Tulsa Honor Academy is celebrating its first-ever graduating class with a college signing day.

When you think of a signing day, your mind might go to sports, but Tuesday was about celebrating academic success. One by one, these seniors took the stage to announce where they'll be heading to college. This isn't a graduation but instead, a way to recognize the hard work these students have put in for years.

Ismael Ponce is going to Washington University and has big goals.

"My main goal is to study mechanical engineering, mainly with a focus on robotics," says Ponce.

His mom Ana is proud of him and thinks it's a great idea to honor years of dedication this way.

"Just completing high school with a high academic curriculum is really stressful at this age so I'm really happy to see that they celebrated everyone," says Ana Ponce.

Tulsa Honor Academy says 97 percent of its first graduating class have been accepted into 4-year universities. Ismael says the reality of graduating is sinking in.

"Exciting, but at the same time it gets to your head, it's like this is real, this is kind of the end of it, after this, I'm off to college," he says.

Like many seniors at THA, he says he's the first in his family to go straight to college after high school.

"College is a new opportunity and opportunity that my parents never really had, something that they've always known I could do, something they know I can excel in, and for me, college is the opportunity to show everyone what I can truly do," Ponce says.

He says he's excited about his future.

"It's the start of a new chapter in which I get to show people who I really am and what I can do for the world," he says.