A friendship has blossomed between two young students at LaPlace Elementary School.

Ravyn Bazile and Aleyda Gonzalez both live in LaPlace, love to dance and are the school’s eighth grade and fifth grade Students of the Year.

The girls met a few times before being awarded their titles but weren’t really that close. Once the girls were named Students of the Year, they learned they had many things in common and became fast friends.

Principal Alison Cupit said students who have a 3.5 GPA in fifth and eighth grade for the previous three consecutive years and the first nine weeks of their current grade are eligible for the honor.

Students create a portfolio that consists of basic information, their test scores and awards they have won before going through an interview process.

Students are asked various questions, graded and the student with the highest score is named Student of the Year.

“If you look at the rubric for Student of the Year, they want an all-around student,” Cupit said. “We want a student that doesn’t just excel academically, but also in our community, especially with eighth graders.”

Cupit said Bazile and Gonzalez fit the criteria.

This is 14-year-old Bazile’s second time as LaPlace Elementary Student of the Year; she earned the title in fifth grade.

“To me, it means being an example for everybody else in the school,” Bazile said. “I do a lot of outside activities and also school activities and I keep my grades up. I’m an all-A student. I’ve been on honor roll since first grade.”

Bazile has found a way to balance schoolwork and her passion of dance. She is a member of the school dance team, along with dancing outside of school.

“I’ve been dancing for 12 years,” she said. “For balancing school and dance, I have a lot of late nights. I’ll be at school until around 5:30 or 6 p.m., then I go home to get ready for dance. I get home around 8 p.m., and I eat while I do my homework. It’s hard, but I try to study during breaks between dance. Grades are important, because I want to be the best and I want to make my mom proud.”

Bazile also does volunteer work through the school dance team, Beta Club and on her own.

“Community service is important because if you don’t put anything into your community, you won’t get anything back,” she said.

Keeping up her grades and helping others is also important to Gonzalez, 11.

For this first timer, she said it’s exciting being named the fifth grade Student of the Year.

“I’m excited because I know I’m making my parents proud and also my former teachers proud” she said. “I get all As, and I’ve been on the honor roll since first grade. Being on the honor roll is great. My parents are proud because I work hard.”

Also a dancer, Gonzalez has learned to balance her passion and schoolwork.

“My dance classes are actually kind of late,” she said. “So when I have the time I finish eating dinner as soon as possible then I study and do my homework.

Also in my free time I like to read chapter books.”

Gonzalez also helps with the kindergarten classes.

“I help the teacher with the AR testing for the younger students,” she said.

“I also help them with testing on the computers. I do it because it feels good helping people around me.”

Both girls said they hope they make their school and community proud as they represent the eighth and fifth grade Students of the Year.

The girls will go on interview on the District level in January.