William R. Fitzsimmons, the dean of admissions at Harvard, said he had heard of schools with more than 100 valedictorians, and had seen home-schooled students praised as No. 1  out of one  all of which has helped render the distinction meaningless.

“I think, honestly, it’s a bit of an anachronism,” he said. “This has been a long tradition, but in the world of college admissions, it makes no real difference.”

Even some principals who have named multiple valedictorians acknowledge that the honor no longer carries the same weight.

“If you’ve got one in a population of 500, it has special significance,” said John O’Breza, the principal of Cherry Hill East. “When you have 9, 10 or 30 in a population of 500, the numbers speak for themselves. The more rare it is, the more distinguished.”

Still, being tapped as valedictorian resonates deeply. “I feel like as long as you reach that point, it doesn’t matter how many you have,” said Yvette Leung, one of the Jericho seven, who is bound for Harvard. “To be named valedictorian is an honor and a testament to how hard we’ve tried.”

The word valedictorian  Latin for “farewell sayer” appears as early as 1759 in the diary of the Rev. Edward Holyoke, then president of Harvard College. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as “the student usually having the highest rank in a graduating class who delivers the valedictory address at the commencement exercises.”

Image The top seniors at Jericho High School will perform a 10-minute skit instead of giving speeches.

School officials contend that there are more valedictorians than ever before because the frenzy over college admissions has made students more serious about grades and has spurred them to load up on advanced courses beginning in freshman year. In addition, some schools have adjusted their formulas to give more students a shot at the top spot by counting more courses toward the grade-point average, or limiting the weight given to any one particular subject.