A panel of teachers, guidance counselors and administrators at Hamilton High School West have selected eight seniors as the Class of 2020’s Academic Achievers. Each nominated student has written a testimonial. Community News Service is proud to recognize the students for their achievement.
Andres Blanco-Bonilla, World Language
Words are common to use because we use them every day. Despite that, they are still so unique. Every language has their own words, some of which cannot easily be translated into others. In some ways, a sentence even when translated is never the same in another language as in its first. From hearing both English and Spanish growing up, I recognized this beauty in language early on. As early as eighth grade, I took my first language course, Spanish 1, and have continued doing so every year until now, where I am taking AP Spanish 5, an extremely difficult and demanding class. Each time I moved up a level, I learned something new and grew my vocabulary. All the hard work that I have put into this has led me to where I am now. Currently, I am the president of Hamilton High West’s National Spanish Honors Society, where I work with my peers to further expand our appreciation for the Spanish language and culture.
Bragging aside, out of all the subjects I could’ve been recognized for, I am so glad I am being awarded for my interest in world language. I wouldn’t have it any other way. There is still a lot that I have to learn, as although I am bilingual, I still aim to master more languages. Today’s world is more interconnected than it has ever been before and communicating with people from different countries that will not know what you are saying is more common. It is also easier than ever to learn more world languages through different apps, learning programs, and the variety of classes available from high school to college. With all this, I strive to expand my already extensive knowledge. While I do not intend to major in anything even related to a World Language, I’m confident that the ability to ask where the library is in Spanish will be very useful in a STEM field.
Dieter Felkner, Technology
Ever since I can remember, my imagination has been dominated by thoughts of how things work. I fondly remember hours spent dissecting machines and building functional mechanisms with LEGOs. I never truly knew what I wanted to do until my senior year: I was always switching back and forth between science, math and technology. The reason that I have chosen technology as my subject of choice is that it takes the awesome theories of science and math and puts them to practical use in hands-on, innovative ways.
To me, technology provides endless creative freedom. There are few limits to the possibilities that technology offers. Most problems that arise can be solved with enough drafting, designing, and production. The methods, resources, and skills which are used in technology are often very high-tech and groundbreaking. The thought that I could be on the forefront of solving important issues that could help mankind is exciting to say the least.
The opportunities offered by the field of technology have always been interesting to me. Some of my favorite times in school were during physics labs and CAD design projects. These courses provided platforms for technology education and experience. Outside of school, I have always sought activities that emphasize the hands-on elements of technology. I have been a member of a 4-H STEM Club since 2017. In that time, we have built and programmed drones and participated in BeetleBot competitions against college students. I also spent one summer learning about materials used in manufacturing, and another in a design and innovation program. Through these activities, I gained valuable, real-life experience.
I feel honored to be chosen as the Hamilton High School West Technology 2019-2020 Academic Achiever. My ultimate dream is to open up my own company that specializes in building machinery. The knowledge that someone else supports my walk in life and recognizes my dedication to technology is a huge source of encouragement and inspiration.
Shaelee Figueroa, Fine Arts
I glance at the time on the corner of my laptop screen. 1:21 a.m. I gaze around at my surroundings. Paints, brushes, and countless other art supplies scattered across the table. My hands covered with smears of paint. My music playing softly from my laptop: humming throughout the living room, filling up the empty space. The world is still.
I look down at my art project, more than halfway there. Exhaustion is present, but I continue, not sleeping until it is done. It is tiresome staying up but those nights have become one of my favorite moments in life. Each time I finish a piece of art, at whichever hour it may be, I always experience the same reminder. I created something entirely with my hands. A blank canvas transformed into a work of art.
Therefore, as tedious as it can be at times, the late nights will always be worth it if it means I can keep creating. Art makes me feel the most alive and like myself. Ever since I could lift a pencil, I would be drawing and filling out endless pages of my coloring books. Markers, crayons, colored pencils; they were and continue to be my partners in crime. To many people, I can be a bit reserved and timid. However, within my private self, my mind is constantly racing. Through my art, viewers get an insight into my personality and the way I perceive the world.
As dramatic as it sounds, I honestly do not know who I would be without art. I am grateful to be able to feel such passion and comfort towards an interest. Therefore, I will take this passion and run into the world, eager to make this love into a career. To become the artist I always dreamed of being.
Nayeli Franco, Business
Before sophomore year, the entirety of my school life was focused on pursuing a career in politics and ultimately becoming a lawyer or judge. Yet, my interest in numbers has always exceeded my performance in english class or my involvement in politics. It was not until Mr. Fishman went around the halls my freshman year exclaiming, “Are you an A level or honors student? Take accounting! Take it!” that I distinguished my passions from a goal set long before I could even realize them. Accounting soon grew to mean far more than simply a course to fill my schedule; it was a source of comfort and peace.
Learning how the economy flows and how the backbone of American society is ultimately formed through business and corporation is an interesting topic that I am excited to continue learning in college and throughout my future years. The joy I feel when solving a difficult problem or when I have mastered a new skill reassures me that accounting and business are what I am meant to do. The world of business never ceases to grow or change, and knowing this motivates me to expand my knowledge everyday. All other topics in school at one point or another have seemed uninteresting or repetitive, but I have never felt that way when thinking of my chosen career path. As I get closer to completing senior year and going off to college, I am confident in the fact that there is no other field of study that would suit me better than business.
Receiving this year’s Business Academic Achiever is an honor that I would have never expected to receive at the start of high school, and reminds me how lucky I am to have found my calling. I am eager to discover what the future holds, and know that confidence in my abilities and what I have chosen to study will prepare me accordingly.
Lauren LeClaire, Social Studies
Everyone has a history, but no ones’ is the same. I love social studies because we can learn to not repeat the same mistakes of the past. I’ve always been drawn to the subject because I was good at memorization. However, once I entered high school, the history department at West showed me that there was so much more to love about the subject. The history teachers at West all share a passion for the subject that is contagious, and some of my favorite high school memories come from these classes and the genuinely great people that taught them. As I found myself scheduling my courses with all of the history classes offered at my school, I realized I was quickly running out of elective options, so I decided to try out some classes in another aspect of social studies. This was when I saw my passion branch into a completely different field of social studies; politics. I ended up falling in love with political science after taking courses like AP Government and GALRE at West. I never saw myself loving history, especially not politics, but it quickly became a passion that I found can lead me to make positive change in the world.
I am beyond honored to be the Social Studies Academic Achiever for 2019-2020. It means so much to be recognized along with the other distinguished members of my class, who also happen to be some of my best friends. I can’t wait to learn more about the subject in college, where I plan to major in Pre-Law or Political Science. I’m excited and ready to see where social studies and learning about the past can take me in my future.
Solomon Rios, Science
Science is a subject that has always played an important role in my academics. I would say my passion for science came about through my learning experiences in school, as I consider science to be a rewarding challenge that feeds my curiosity. My determination to succeed arises from my dedication to science, it is a subject that involves a higher order of thinking to approach the world and to investigate such scientific mysteries, and complex challenges that compel me to want to learn more.
Once I got to high school, I was given the opportunity to take many advanced science courses. Over the past four years, I have taken Biology, Honors Chemistry, AP Biology, and I am currently taking AP Chemistry, as well as Anatomy and Physiology. Taking these rigorous science courses over the years really solidified my passion for the subject as well as my major and career choice. In college, I intend to enroll in many advanced science courses that will enable me to conduct laboratory experiments, as I enjoy the hands-on experience of learning the ways of life. In addition, in college, I plan on majoring in Biology, with a pre-medicine track, to hopefully, pursue a career as a surgeon.
Science is a way to investigate a phenomena or to improve or correct previous ideas about the world. I know that as I prepare to begin my college education, science is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
Nicole Wagner, English
Some people say that she was born with a pen in her hand. Others say that she had been telling stories since she could speak. Out of the family lore that surrounded her from birth, her passion for language and writing remained the dominant and unavoidable fact of all their fanciful jokes. She began small, with short poems prompted by her elementary school teachers about her favorite colors, or her favorite season, even venturing into her dreams for the future. Not once, while so eloquently detailing her ambitions of going to the moon, or being a famous rockstar, or curing major diseases, did she ever realize that the pleasure she reveled in from the words written in her notebook was even an option as a future career.
She is me. I now stand proudly before my peers as Hamilton High School West’s Academic Achiever for English. Never had I once considered that my passion for storytelling and knack for prose could place me on such a humbling pedestal. Writing has always been my first true love; through literature, I could be anyone I wanted to be at any time, in any place, with anyone. It was a wondrous experience the first time I wrote myself into stories of faraway lands filled with dragons or corrupt governments or apocalyptic world conditions; I felt as if the sky was a faulty, easily-broken limit of my imagination and capabilities. And now, receiving this award, it fills me with such joy to know that my work has been acknowledged and appreciated in, dare I say, one of the most influential and educational periods of my life.
Now, as I am sent off to college with my chin held high and my notebook kept at hand, I plan to incorporate my passion for writing and English into my studies in higher education. I will be studying video game design, and the most fun part of this future career of mine will be writing the branching, ever-changing storylines of the video games I create. English and writing will always be my first and last love, to the very end.
Peter Wright, Math
From adding and subtracting in kindergarten to solving differential equations in AP Calculus BC, mathematics has always been a heavy part of my life. Each year of school, I have taken at least one course in math and have multiplied my extensive knowledge of the subject. With six STEM courses in my senior year, I do not doubt that I will learn even more. Now that college has rolled around it’s about time to start thinking about what I want to do with my life. It’s only fitting that I choose a major that applies the equations and algebraic concepts I’ve been utilizing for so long. I have grown fond of the interconnectedness of Physics and Calculus, while also grasping the more complex elements of Computer Science. When you multiply all of these together, the final product is Aerospace Engineering.
Aeronautical and Aerospace engineering appeals to me in every aspect. This field seems daunting at first glance, but it’s built off of all of my interests. I have not only enjoyed but also excelled in my Calculus, Computer Science, and Physics courses. I have received perfect scores on the regular Math portion of the SAT and the Math Level II SAT Subject Test. My qualifications are exponential. Aerospace engineering takes all of these subjects and constitutes a single superfield. Rockets have computer avionics systems programmed to employ calculus and physics notions to graze the atmosphere with ease. It doesn’t get much better.
It is an honor to be one of the Academic Achievers. All of these people have made strides in their respective fields and I’m sure will continue to thrive. I aspire to learn more and implement all the math that I learn in college in a positive way to change the world.
Shaelee Figueroa,
Solomon Rios,
