Education leaders honored 244 students Tuesday for going the extra mile to ensure they are prepared for college.

Former Commissioner of Higher Education Richard Kendell addressed the second graduating class of Utah Scholars at a banquet held in their honor recognizing outstanding students from Alpine, Davis, Granite, Jordan, Park City, Ogden, Provo, Salt Lake and Washington County.

"This honor is well-deserved and rightfully earned," said David Buhler, interim commissioner of higher education. "These students are committed to ensuring they have appropriately prepared for college and for work by taking rigorous high school courses and persisting to graduation."

The number of Utah Scholar recipients grew from 160 in 2007 to 244 in 2008.

Following the Utah Scholars launch in September 2006, local business leaders and education leaders teamed up to encourage high school students to take a more rigorous course of study, starting in the ninth grade. That includes four years of English, four years of math, three years of lab-based science, three and a half years of social studies and two years of a language other than English.