Governor speaks to class of one

GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) - Jeff Greenwood is in a class by himself - literally.

The Opheim High School senior was the only student to graduate from the school Friday night. But the small event drew a big name. Gov. Brian Schweitzer gave the commencement address.

Greenwood, who plans to attend Dickinson State University in North Dakota, said before the graduation ceremony that the small school is the "hub of activity" in the rural area 50 miles northeast of Glasgow and about 10 miles south of the Canadian border.

"You get to know everybody and you're friends with everybody," he said. "At the same time, you can't get away with anything."

Greenwood grew up on the family farm 15 miles outside of Opheim. He had a few classmates before his high school years, but when he was a freshman, his last remaining classmate moved to Utah. Since then, he's taken some classes on his own and has enrolled in several with the juniors.

"The student-to-teacher ratio is pretty good," said Greenwood, who is the student body president and, of course, the senior class president.

Principal LeRoy Nelson, who has also been school superintendent for seven years, said he thought this was the first time Opheim has graduated just one student. Six students graduated last year and 12 students are on track to graduate in 2009.

Nelson said he thinks single graduates will become more common as more rural schools see a drop in enrollment. Last year, Froid High School had one graduate. Schweitzer spoke at that graduation as well.