A glass of orange juice and a sensible breakfast was all Tameka Sanders needed to get her going, not to mention eight hours of sleep Sunday night.

By 8:30 Monday morning, the Selma High School senior sat among her peers waiting for the challenge. And, as she said, she is definitely up for it.

Yesterday not only marked the beginning of her plans to attend college next year, but also the chance to prove to herself that she can succeed despite the struggle it took her to get where she is.

The hallways fell silent as the12th and 11th graders at Selma High began their five-day testing period for the Alabama High School Graduation Exam, which will determine whether or not seniors will graduate and whether the school will remain academically clear.

Language was the test topic Monday, today is math. Each day this week students will put their knowledge in different subject areas to the test.

Principal Eli Welch III said he is confident that students will perform well and that &uot;we are going to remain at the current status.&uot;

Preparation for what Welch said the graduation diploma is &uot;resting on&uot; has been anything but small.

Since the beginning of the school year, students have been exposed to various tutorial programs and classes to etch in stone the concepts and information they need to know to meet the state requirements.

There was even an assembly for students taking the test that focused on every aspect of the test taking process, from strategies for passing to what to do the night before and the morning of, and on motivating them to believe in themselves and their abilities.

Testing specialist Levi Marshall advised students not to be intimidated by the test. &uot;At this point our students are fully aware of the importance of the test … and will perform better than they anticipate,&uot; Marshall predicted.

Senior Amanda Burks said all she could do is &uot;try my best.&uot;

In July of this year, the state made it official that Selma High moved from a 4-year hold on alert 2 status to clear.

For a school to be categorized as clear, 90 percent of senior students must pass all required subjects.

Because of state regulations, students currently are only required to pass four of the five subjects &045;&045; language, math, reading and science portions. Students have the option of taking the social studies portion, which will reflect in their transcript if the student passes.

But by next year, 90 percent of graduating seniors taking the exam will be required to take the social studies portion, making five out of five subject areas required to pass.