They've already been doing this by having a top 10 of the class. Our school system does that. it was done to lessen some of the, they felt, underhanded stuff that was going on with the top students to get their valedictorian status since that status is rarely rewarded anymore to someone strictly 4.0. They get AP and other credits to boost GPA's super high. Not sure the reasoning for the district you are speaking of, but some have done it not in the interest of communalism but in the interest of solving some of the unethical behavior that was going on among top students.
Now, as a summa cum laude grad myself, I don't want to see top recognition done away with. You certainly make sacrifices to make those top achievements that likely other people did not. I never get why I have to care about someone else's feelings who didn't get an award when they didn't care about mine when I was sitting there for 6 hours studying for an exam or several days getting ready for a project. It seems some of our nutty decision makers forget that there was a point in the academic career where it wasn't 'fair' for those who are getting the top honors ie they missed out on social events, family gatherings, 'fun stuff', and things they otherwise wanted to do in the interest of excelling at their particular field of study. We all put energy into the things we value--sometimes society rewards us for them, sometimes it doesn't. We take our accolades and knocks either way. To take away a rewarding component from those who value excellence in this particular regard in the interest of coddling the feelings of those who didn't until the rewards were divied out is reprehensible.