IA Okma Senior Honors Program

These students have achieved extraordinary academic success at IA Okma. We all know how difficult it can be for students to find a balance between their academic and non-academic lives. These students have not only found the balance, but have also managed to also push themselves academically.

CUM LAUDE HONOREES: These students have maintained a cumulative grade point average between 3.5 and 3.74 and are being recognized as cum laude honorees. Please congratulate them for their outstanding academic achievement.

Akila Abeyaratna

Kalen Akins

Michael Alexander

Hamzah Bilal

Dia Camara

Anastasia Charnesky

Noor Etiba

Bethany Gallaher

Usman Haq

Arwa Hassaballa

Dhara Joshi

Elizabeth Kim

Carson Morgan

Izabella Muchnik

Saleh Muraad

Ajit Raghavan

Kaleigh Riccio

Andrew Setera

Pranav Shukla

Grace Singh

Donovin Thompson

Ally Van Esch

Dania Zeidan

MAGNA CUM LAUDE HONOREES: These students are being awarded the designation of magna cum laude for maintaining a cumulative grade point average between 3.75 and 3.89. Please recognize them for their superior dedication and hard work.

Marc Beired

Vitoria Berisha

Olha Bobalo

Sean Brenneman

Andrew Cao

Samuel Cao

Noelle Chan

Neha Dwibhashyam

Isabelle Fernandes

Ellie Franklin

Ashwin Hariharan

Cameron Jajonie

Moochan Lee

Josephine Leone

Gaspard Mosquet

Naveen Nithiyaragawan

Fred Osborn

Pelagia Pamel

Yelim Park

Quintin Peters

Raphael Rahman

Vivek Rao

Ryan Schubiner

Madeleine Strom

Kylie Walter

SUMMA CUM LAUDE HONOREES: These students have achieved grade point averages between 3.9 and 4.0 and have earned the distinction of summa cum laude. Please celebrate them for their exemplary achievements.

Faiqa Alam

Brandon Alati

Ahmad Almaat

Pranav Arunandhi

Nandini Arya

Hunter Barr

Jillian Beckwell

Eden Boes

Abigail Budd

Nicholas Carr

Jessica Cho

Coby Christoph

Bryson Clark

Alexandra Clugh

Alexa DeKorte

Rachelle Deng

Colton DeVos

Sophie Egnotovich

Zeena Garada

Miles Goedert

Filip Grodzicki

Nataliah Jwaida

Esha Kaul

Sarah Kefri

Vanessa Kiefer

Lawrence Kim

Meera Kumar

Jacob Lentz

Karina Lisean

Angela Liu

Marti Lombarte Soler

Emily Madlambayan

Ayden Makar

Jack Manting

Rebecca Mao

Neil Mascarenhas

Pooja Menon

Conner Morgan

Anika Paffhausen

Caitlin Paquette

Matthew Priskorn

William Rabon

Christina Said

Riccardo Salzmann

Nardine Samuel

Maya Shah

Lian Shoukfeh

Isabella Simakas

Ramiz Sohail

Divya Suresh

Patrick Szygowski

Amy Tang

James Jett Tang

Thu-Anh Tran

Aarani Varatharajan

Udbhav Vasishta

Tara Wagh

Kemp Winkler

Guo Yu

GWENDOLYN (WENDY) JACKSON

Mrs. Monck's Speech:

I’d like to recognize Wendy Jackson as the recipient of the Environmental Systems and Societies Award. Throughout the year Wendy showed an unparalleled enthusiasm and interest for learning about the environment and the ways in which humans impact it. She demonstrates an understanding of the scientific principles that are at work in an ecosystem and is able to examine how cultural, economic, ethical, political and social interactions influence our management of that resource. Whether in small groups or large instruction it was great to see how her eyes light up when she is learning a topic she is passionate about. She encourages her peers to examine all aspects of a problem when trying to find a solution. She is a curious and thoughtful student, asking questions and participating in discussion in ways that extend the learning of the class--which is even more impressive considering it was the first block of the day! I have no doubt that Wendy will continue to be a steward of the environment, prompting others to examine their choices and the role that our decisions play in the prevention, management or solution of environmental problems. Congratulations Wendy!

JAMES (JETT) TANG

Mrs. Kiriazis's Speech:

Mrs. Monck and I would like to recognize Jett Tang as the recipient of the Biology Department Award. Jett is an outstanding biology student who demonstrates content mastery, designs sound investigations and has excellent data analysis skills. He is innately curious and seeks out explanations for content that goes beyond classroom expectations; for example, his work in Science Olympiad extended his knowledge of muscle physiology and he became my go-to person for answering questions when we approached this content in class. His passion for biology led him to explore how different cultural and economic approaches aid to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s as the subject of his Extended Essay. His work was insightful and thoughtfully written in a manner that demonstrated his ability to analyse, evaluate and synthesize scientific information. Jett’s appreciation for an academic challenge and his good nature allows him to work well in a science endeavor and through any unanticipated obstacles in the lab work. (And apparently working with yeast can create many!) Throughout his four years at the IA he has demonstrated academic excellence balanced with high personal standards and for these reasons we congratulate Jett Tang as the Biology Department Awardee.

NICHOLAS CARR

Mrs. Phillips's Speech:

Nick is a stand out student in chemistry due to his passion for the

subject and his curiosity for knowledge. His passion is shown through his initiative to start a student led chemistry tutoring session. This session is a weekly session run by Nick. Not only does Nick run the session, but he also makes helpful study guides and notes for students

of all grade levels to use. All of this is done on top of his already challenging school workload. Nick’s curiosity is shown daily in class from volunteering to answer and explain questions, to his unique and creative internal assessment. These two characteristics of passion and curiosity combined with Nick’s ability to think critically and problem solve make him an ideal student and Chemist. It has been a joy to teach Nick chemistry for the past three years.

ANIKA PAFFHAUSEN

Mr. Immekus's Speech:

Throughout the past two years as her DP Physics teacher, I have come to know Anika as among the most hardworking and thoughtful students I have encountered in my fifteen years as an educator. What sets Anika apart is her willingness to work toward bettering herself by clarifying what she does not know and asking questions that extend or go beyond what our class is studying. In addition to her kindness and humility as a person, Anika has shown herself to be a capable and focused student, and she has continuously achieved outstanding marks in difficult courses. Anika has made our shared experience better for herself , her peers, and for me. I thank her for her contributions to our class, and wish her well as she leaves the IA.

ANDREW (A.J.) SETERA

Mrs. Gardner's Speech:

It is my honor to present this year’s English Department Award to a student who has grown tremendously over his two years at the IA. Andrew started out as a quiet student in my classroom. However, as he got more comfortable, he contributed more to discussions, added humor to his conversations and bravely shared personal connections to the texts with his classmates. I can tell that AJ appreciates a good story. I recall the time in class when he finished “Master Harold”...and the boys. He looked up at me and said “this is really sad.” The truth is the text is really sad, but understanding the sadness and appreciating how the playwright makes his audience comprehend his theme is challenging and AJ --really understands. He understood the complexity of the characters, setting, and plot. This is just one example of his ability to appreciate literature.

English, and specifically the drama genre, can be difficult for many students. However, AJ has demonstrated incredible personal growth and knowledge of the English curriculum. His understanding of the purpose behind a writer’s choice is admirable.

AJ’s passion for literature extends beyond the classroom, as shown through, his choice for the spring one acts that truly confirmed his appreciation. The play was clever and really spoke to the power of words. I know he wants to continue to tell stories through film, which is really exciting! For these reasons and more, I believe that AJ will continue to appreciate literature and continue to tell stories. Because he understands the power of words! This is why we chose AJ as the recipient of the Literature award. Congratulations! Keep telling and listening to stories.

Every year the math department has the privilege of honoring students who have demonstrated an exemplary level of talent and dedication to the field of mathematics. In addition to being excellent students, each of these individuals possess the critical thinking and risk taking skills necessary to be truly great mathematicians. Mrs. Slade, Mrs. Cassazza, Ms. Hessler, and the entire math department are proud to recognize the following students:

ISABELLA SIMAKAS

Mrs. Slade's Speech:

Isabella Simakas has earned this award for her achievement in Math Studies. She is perseverant, intelligent and hard working. She works well with other students and asks good, thoughtful questions. She is friendly and consistently has a positive attitude and I have really enjoyed having her as a student this year.

MATTHEW PRISKORN

Mrs. Cassazza's Speech:

In Math SL, Matthew is an exemplary student. He has a keen mathematical mind as well as being a positive presence in the classroom. He is principled, inquisitive, and creative. He isn’t afraid of hard work, and has consistently been a strong member of our mathematics community since he was a freshman.

EMILY MADLAMBAYAN

Mrs. Hessler's Speech:

In an exceptionally strong class of Math HL students, Emily managed to stand out. She is a bright, inquisitive, and dedicated student with a high aptitude for math. Furthermore, Emily's personal strengths are as impressive as her intellectual accomplishments. She always supports her classmates, takes risks to tackle the most challenging problems in our work, and finds ways to apply her math knowledge outside of class. Her passion and dedication to math are an inspiration to all those around her.

PRANAV ARUNANDHI

Mrs. Slade's Speech:

Further Math is an independent study course that is only offered to our brightest math students. Pranav is the only student this year who met the qualifications to take this course. He is incredibly gifted at math, and has done an exceptional job working independently to learn the content of this class. I am honored to present this award to him.

To conclude, as a math department we feel fortunate to have taught the entire class of 2020, and we will miss you dearly. Best wishes to all of you.

RAPHAEL RAHMAN

KEMP WINKLER

Mrs. Kwiatkowski's Speech:

Each year the history department honors students who demonstrate both a passion for history content and the skills of a historian. This year, Raphael has demonstrated both of those qualities in my class. I have only had the opportunity to teach Raphael this year, however he has had experience with each member of our department due to his love of history. Raphael has the inquisitive nature of a historian and he has approached each of us with either questions or interesting content that he’s found on his own. In class, he absorbs all the content he can while also questioning how he can learn more. Raphael does a lot of his own research outside the classroom walls and will often send emails with interesting tidbits he has come across. There are definitely quite a few topics that he is an expert in due to his own desire to learn! I am most in awe, and proud of, his motivation to research things he is interested in or has questions about. Raphael doesn’t take content at face value and instead uses his critical thinking skills in search of historical truth and knowledge. I am happy to have had the opportunity to work with him this year and, based on his love for history and his clear historical skills, to award him a History Department Honors Award. Congrats, Raphael!

Mr. deZwaan's Speech:

Dear Kemp,

It has been my distinct pleasure to have had you as one of my most involved, engaged, outgoing, kind and dedicated history students for three consecutive academic years. You are a true Historian. This was self-evident, both in the classroom and in your assessments. The quality of your History Internal Assessment did not go unnoticed. A dear colleague of mine awarded it with one of the best scores possible. Accordingly, I look forward to using your Internal as an example of what a stellar assessment can look like for many years to come. Thank you for granting me permission to use it! I was equally impressed with your History Extended Essay involving the Chrysler Corporation during the Second World War. A year ago, I recognized you with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Award. This year, it is my great honor to present the shared History Department Award to you. Congratulations and the best of wishes to you.

AYDEN MAKAR

Mr. Davies's Speech:

The Senior Theory of Knowledge Award this year goes to Ayden Makar!

It is my belief that fundamentally Ayden understands what we were trying to do in ToK. Which is to say, to question how we assemble evidence to create knowledge, and how this knowledge leads to our personal identities and the communities we are involved in. Ayden was quite willing to take a look at his fundamental assumptions and deeply held beliefs, while also being able to earnestly consider the arguments of others. A quiet leader in the classroom, Ayden is willing to share his insight, question others, all while not dominating the conversation or offending others when he disagreed. He is an updated Teddy Roosevelt as he walked softly and carried a big intellectual stick. Ayden was also good at making powerful contributions that I had not previously considered or anticipated from the students. Having worked with him since his sophomore year, I am sad that Ayden must graduate, but I am excited for him and the great possibilities in front of him.

For these reasons and more, the ToK Department Award goes to Ayden Makar. Mr. Davies

MEERA KUMAR

Madame Merchants video:

ELLIE FRANKLIN

Frau Schultz's Speech:

I am honored to present the German Department Award to Ellie Franklin. Ellie has demonstrated a real love of German and German culture throughout her four years at the IA. Ellie had never taken German before starting at the IA, and she has developed strong language skills due to her discipline and enjoyment of German. She has attended almost all of the cultural and language outings and opportunities since her freshman year, including “Speak German” lunches, the Chicago trip, and an enrichment trip to Germany. Ellie always comes to class with a positive attitude and an excitement for learning more German and practicing her skills. She is kind to all of her peers, has been an integral member of the German Honor Society and has helped mentor underclassmen. For her junior and senior years, Ellie also studied Ab Initio French, and has excelled in learning a third language, further exemplifying her passion for languages and culture. I am very proud to give Ellie Franklin the German department award this year. Congratulations!

ALEXANDRA CLUGH

Senora Rigg's Speech:

It is my pleasure to give this year's Spanish award to Lexi Clugh. Every day that Lexi is in class, she brings a passion and enthusiasm to her work that positively impacts those around her. Lexi has challenged herself to speak only Spanish during class, and, what is more, she can be found speaking only in Spanish even before class has officially begun! This is quite a feat at 7:45am! Lexi is an extremely hard worker and overcomes any obstacle with grit and determination. And she couples her academic drive with a kind and sensitive spirit that allows her to work productively and collaboratively with her peers. Finally, Lexi emits joy and empathy when she learns about the rich cultures represented in the Spanish speaking world. Congratulations, Lexi!

JACOB LENTZ

Mr. Tecmire's Speech:

For the past four years, Jacob has been involved in everything econ. He has competed in every competition, including Euro and Fed Challenge, attended every guest speaker, and has become one of the most reliable and knowledgeable leaders Econ club has ever had. Serving the past year as co-president of Econ Club, Jacob has been a valuable resource for the underclassmen, and despite the year being cut short, had a tremendous impact on the members of the Club.

His calming presence and reliable leadership skills will be sorely missed next year. Despite choosing the school I vehemently BEGGED him to avoid, I am proud of the man he has grown up to be over these past four years, and know he will find success in whatever it is he chooses to do!

Thank you, Jacob, for all you’ve done from the members of Econ Club, and everything you’ve done to help me as well.

MILES GOEDERT

Mr. LaNoue's Speech:

This year’s recipient of the Senior DP Music Award is Miles Goedert. Miles is an incredibly talented performer, playing masterful performances of professional level piano and viola works. He is also an inspired composer, writing works with maturity far beyond his years, which have won statewide honors and the opportunity to attend the Oberlin Conservatory summer composition program. With his performing and composing skills, Miles assembled one of the strongest HL Music portfolios I have seen in my eight years of teaching IB Music. Miles’ passion for music theory and analysis is an oasis in what can be a desert of dry material (pun intended). His Extended Essay on the music of lesser-known Impressionist composer Rebecca Clarke featured Masters-Level harmonic analysis, and did so with an eye for the bigger picture. Despite his immense musical talents, Miles is one of the kindest students I know, who balances his skills and passions with humility and positivity. It is no surprise that Miles will continue his musical studies at college next year. Bravo, and good luck, Miles!

DELANEY FINN

Mr. LaNoue's Speech:

It will come as no surprise that this year’s Recipient of the Senior Choir Award is Delaney Finn. Over the past four years Delaney has demonstrated that she is consistently and intensely dedicated to vocal music. She has taken private voice lessons, attended both District and State Solo & Ensemble, and won positions in the MSVMA District, State, and All-State Honors Choirs, as well as the ACDA National Honors Choir. Delaney often contributes deep thoughts about our music in Chorale, and has been invaluable as a section leader of the Altos. Her success in vocal music is only surpassed by her passion for it. Delaney wrote an excellent Extended Essay on an analysis of choral music composer Eric Whitacre, and decided to extend her musical involvement even further by undertaking DP Music at the Higher Level. Every day after class (or before class, or after school), you can find Delaney composing at the piano. It is clear that for her, music is a way of understanding and communicating deep thoughts about the world. Delaney is also just the kind of student who thanks her teachers every day after class. For all these reasons, it is fitting that Delaney will continue her musical studies in college next year. Thanks for your dedication, and good luck, Delaney!

MATTHEW PRISKORN

Mr. LaNoue's Speech:

This year’s recipient of the Senior Band Award is Matthew Priskorn. As a trombonist, Matthew has been an integral part of the band program over the past four years, playing as a section leader in Symphonic Band and Symphony Orchestra, and a section member in Jazz Band. He has regularly participated in MSBOA Solo & Ensemble Festival, earning First Division ratings, and was accepted to the MSBOA District 4 Honors Band. Aside from his skill and commitment as a performer, Matthew’s unique creativity is an essential part of the culture of the Music program. Whether he is writing a computer program to randomly composer music for him, being the first student to write his Musical Links Investigation in the form of a court deposition, or cultivating the legend of the Sausage Mage through the development of a video game (that’s an inside band joke I’m sure I don’t really understand), Matthew uses his weird powers for good, and that is why he is such a pleasure to work with. Congratulations, Matthew!

DIA CAMARA

Mr. LaNoue's Speech:

This year’s recipient of the Senior Jazz Band Award is Dia Camara. As a member of Bazz Jand, Dia has held the wind section together as the bari sax player for the past several years. Dia regularly demonstrates the courage to try new things. While I usually have to coerce students into taking a solo, Dia is always willing to try improvising a solo when few others will dare. Dia will stay after class to work out complex passages, or ask me to go over the chord progressions to practice his improvising. It is precisely this passion-fueled dedication to self-improve that makes Dia such a great student to work with, and it is why I know he can succeed in whatever he chooses to apply that dedication. Congratulations, Dia!

PELAGIA PAMEL

Mr. Lewin-Zieglar's Speech:

I am honored to give the Orchestra Honors Award to Pelagia Pamel. She is a dedicated student and violinist in my Symphony Orchestra. She is someone who genuinely loves music. She often performs outside of school, attends Solo and Ensemble where she receives superior ratings, and she enjoys collaborating with other students. She volunteers her time with programs like Accent Pontiac which provides music education to students in the Pontiac School District. After high school, she is hoping to dual major in voice and international studies. I know that she will do amazing things in whatever career she chooses to follow.

ANASTASIA CHARNESKY

Mrs. Murawa's Speech:

It is my honor to present this year's Senior Art Award to Anastasia Charnesky. It has been my pleasure teaching Ana over the past two years, she inspires me everyday. Ana is extremely hard working, creative and driven. Once she sets a goal for herself or has a creative vision, she works tirelessly to achieve it. I admire how Ana doesn’t always play it safe, she takes risks with her art and really pushes herself out of her comfort zone. It takes a lot of determination, and the results are impressive to say the least. That is not to say that challenges don’t ever arise, but when they do, Ana is amazing at persevering, staying focused and flexible in order to make her creative ideas come to life.

This year Ana was honored by Scholastic for her artistic abilities earning both a Silver Key and an Honorable Mention for her work. Ana pushes herself artistically outside of the classroom as well, she has taken multiple workshops on her own time in order to expose herself to new media and techniques and has been chosen to participate in the GM Design’s You Makes a Difference Program for the past two years. Ana has also received countless scholarship offers from every college that she has applied to because of her impressive portfolio. She has a very kind and patient heart and is a great leader inside and outside of the classroom. She is one of the board members for the Art Club and is also a member of the National Art Honors Society. Ana has a way of making her peers feel comfortable and cared for. Her gentle kindness, creativity and work ethic are going to make her very successful. I am so proud of her and cannot wait to see what the future holds!

Wishing you all the best!

ALEXANDRA CLUGH, VANESSA KIEFER, MEERA KUMAR, AYDEN MAKAR

Mrs. Dittus's Speech:

On behalf of Frau and myself, it is such a pleasure to present the Theater Award to Lexi Clugh, Vanessa Kiefer, Meera Kumar and Ayden Makar. These students have contributed so much to our theater program. Not only are they great actors, directors and board members, but they are truly wonderful human beings. They strive to make our theater program extraordinary, and it is, and give so much of their time and talents. In addition, they encourage their peers to step outside of their comfort zones and join theater. They create a warm and accepting culture where all are welcome. We have absolutely loved working with these amazing students and will miss them so much. We hope you always keep the magic of theater with you!

Congratulations Lexi, Vanessa, Meera and Ayden!

NANDINI ARYA

COBY CHRISTOPH

Frau Schultz's Speech:

On behalf of Mrs. Dittus and myself, it is with great pleasure that we present the Theater Tech Award to Nandini Arya and Coby Christoph. These two certainly create magic within our humble theater world. They never back down from a challenge, whether it is creating a beautiful set, determining the best lighting or making sure the sound works. Nandini and Coby also manage the tech aspects of the IA assemblies and other all school events. They are there to put up the stage on a moment's notice and make sure it is taken down in time for class the next day. Nandini and Coby teach our underclassmen the tricks of the trade with patience and encouragement so that the technical workings of IA events will continue. Congratulations Nandini and Coby!

PATRICK SZYGOWSKI

Mrs. Juco's Speech:

Hi, I’m Joanne Juco the International Academy’s IB Coordinator. At this time I would like to present the IB Craig award which honors an exceptionally well rounded student that possesses all ten of the IB Learner profile characteristics. The student must be an Inquirer, a thinker, a communicator, a risk-taker, knowledgeable, principled, open-minded, balanced, caring and reflective. This year’s recipient is someone who has modeled these characteristics throughout their four years at the International Academy. Patrick Szygowski is intelligent, loyal and trustworthy. Patrick is a mature soul who often leads by example with his calm, even-keeled nature. As his former English teacher, I was continually impressed by the thoughtful, patient way he often played peacemaker in class discussions and the reflective, open-minded way he viewed feedback on his assignments. Patrick’s growth mindset and caring nature towards others will take him far in life, and makes him this year’s recipient of the IB Craig Learner Profile award.

Congratulations, Patrick!

Out of 1.6 million entrants for the National Merit Scholarship Competition, only approximately 34,000 have high enough PSAT/NMSQT scores to be recognized as Commended Students for their outstanding academic promise. These eleven International Academy Okma Campus students earned the title of Commended Student, an incredible achievement. We are very proud of their accomplishments.

Out of the 1.6 million entrants into the National Merit Scholarship Competition, only 15,000 reach the Finalist level. Finalists represent the highest scoring entrants in each state. To become Finalists, these nine International Academy Okma Campus students were required to have an outstanding academic record, the highest PSAT/NMSQT Selection Index scores in the state of Michigan, a written recommendation from their counselor, a high level of activities and leadership, and an exceptional personal essay. We are incredibly proud of the Okma Campus students who earned the National Merit Scholarship Finalist designation.

JILLIAN BECKWELL

Ms. Clancy's Speech:

It’s my pleasure to award Jillian Beckwell with this year’s CAS award. The depth to which Jillian took her reflections is to be commended. For her experiences, she took the time to think deeply about their impact on her life and what she learned from them or how she demonstrated perseverance through them. I admire her ability to try a wide range of experiences (yoga, ukelele, dancing in the IASA show, to name a few) and see them for what they are: a chance to expand her capabilities and have fun. Jillian used her CAS journey to not only develop her own interests but also contribute to community projects that she values including PERIOD Club, her local library, the IA’s music department, and Phoenix Theatre Company. From her reflections it is clear to me that she enjoyed the experiences and they keep her balanced. Congratulations, Jillian! Thank you for inspiring our creativity, activity, and service!

HAMZAH BILAL

AMY TANG

Mrs. Janek's Speech:

How are the characters of the novels "Ask Me No Questions", by Marina Budhos, and "A Very Large Expanse Of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi used to portray Islamophobia's affect on the relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims?

I would like to present Hamzah Bilal with the 2020 Extended Essay award. I am so impressed by the work Hamzah did for this process. He knew his topic from the very beginning but had to work to find a way to use it that would not show bias. He took my advice and pursued an English A Category 1 literary analysis. He also showed remarkable self-management skills as he met all the school based deadlines and in some cases was early or done with the work. I appreciate Hamzah’s willingness to take my advice. I remember us talking about the fact that if he got the majority of work done over the summer, his senior year would be much less stressful in terms of IB assessments. I am very proud of what you accomplished.

Mrs. Janek's Speech:

What are the effects of standardized testing on individual students and society as a whole?

I would like to present Amy Tang with the 2020 Extended Essay award. Amy did a World Studies Extended Essay utilizing the subject areas of Math and Psychology. Amy was considering the fact that it is impossible for students to avoid standardized tests during their high school experience. With so much time and so many resources dedicated to standardized testing, she wanted to figure out the different ways stakeholders are impacted. The calculations were impressive and so was the application of psychological theories on the mental well-being of high school students. I am proud of you for submitting such a well written and relevant extended essay.

The following are IA Okma's senior team members.

Mrs. Miner's Speech:

I would like to recognize all of the seniors who have participated in FIRST Robotics ---which we all know as ”the hardest fun you will ever have” ---and who have spent countless hours working at a task they were never able to actually compete in this year. But as all of your mentors have reminded you constantly - it is about the process - right? You all have to feel good about what you have accomplished over the years. I especially would like to acknowledge the 4-year members who have had to battle through so much adversity. From having to find a new shop, move it, set up a new space, and work diligently and constantly to find sponsorship.

The 4-year veterans are:

Michael Alexander, Kalen Akins, Pranav Arunandhi, Sam Cao, Grishanth Manoharan, Pranav Shukla, Thu-Anh Tran.

To quote the FIRST Robotics founder, Dean Kamen: “FIRST is more than robots. The robots are a vehicle for students to learn important life skills. Kids often come in not knowing what to expect -- of the program nor of themselves. They leave with a vision, with confidence, and with a sense that they can create their own future.”

I love you guys - be sure to keep in touch. Now GO - Create your own future!

KALEN AKINS, ZEENA GARADA, KYLIE WALTER

Madame Merchant's Video:

KEMP WINKLER

Each year, WXYZ, Channel 7 recognizes and rewards academic excellence. The 41st Annual Brightest and Best event honors an outstanding graduating senior. KEMP WINKLER was selected based on his outstanding academic achievement, as well as for being a positive role model for students. Congratulations, Kemp!