Purcell Senior Paisley Nichols has joined an elite club at Purcell High School.

Ranked No. 1 in her class, Nichols has been named one of the 100 Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence Academic All-Staters for 2026, becoming the sixth Purcell Dragon to be so honored.

The 40th Annual Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence Academic Awards Celebration will be Saturday, May 2, at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. This event honors top public school educators and Academic All-State students.

Nichols, the daughter of Josh and Lindsay Nichols, is a member of the Oklahoma Honor Society and the Oklahoma Indian Honor Society. She is a chapter officer for the National Honor Society and a four-year Letter P recipient.

She has been a member of the Student Council for four years and has been an officer for three of those years.

Nichols has been an active member of the Technology Student Association for six years.

She participated in the Youth Enjoy Science Oklahoma, where she worked on cancer research and gained lab experience.

Nichols has committed to Southwestern Oklahoma State University with her intended major in pre-pharmacy with plans to get a dual degree of science health management and a Doctor of Pharmacy.

Purcell High School will get to fly the Academic All-State flag for the next year.

Previous Academic All-Staters at Purcell High School include Meegan Moore in 1998, Rachel Renbarger in 2009, Shianne Andrew in 2016, Ashley Howard in 2018 and Lucy Wilson in 2021.