Senior Awards Program Applauds Park’s Shining Stars

June 3, 2009 • written by Samantha Hartfiel

      It was an evening of applause, cheering, and beaming faces on May 26^th in the Park High School auditorium as Park hosted the Senior Awards Program for the class of 2009. This semi formal night of honor was a celebration of all the achievements in academics, extracurricular activities, and class conduct for the soon to be graduating seniors. Throughout the momentous ceremony, all attending scholars were awarded with many rewards ranging from Academic Letters to scholarships.
    The ceremony began with a brief welcome from Assistant principal Dr. Gall and then Dr. Agbamu took over to reveal the names of the 2009 Top Ten Recipients. These students, who achieved this honor by having the 10 highest cumulative GPAs in the senior class, had two things in common. For one, every single one of them, from Valedictorian Michelle Davis to the tenth scholar Sarah Thiede, were female. Also, all of the 10 were active members of the club National Honor Society, the Park volunteer group that is composed of students with a 3.333 GPA or above. Additionally, each of the women were active in other parts of Park High School and the community as well, participating in a large array activities ranging from Park Theatre to volunteering at Woodwinds Hospital.
      Next, various scholarships were handed out to the deserving students. Many of these scholarships, that were provided by local business such as Anchor Bank and the Tozier Foundation, ranged from $500 to $1,500. The scholarship recipients included Kevin Walker, Shane Penn, and many other students. Nicole Westphal, who was ranked #2 in the top ten students, was commended by the National Merit as well.
     The largest part of the evening was the distribution of the Academic letters and the Presidential Awards. These awards were given to students based on their excelling GPA. Over 200 students picked up an Academic Letter Award for receiving a GPA of 3.333 or higher through Term 3 of senior year. Then the next highest award was the President’s Award for Academic Achievement, which was a silver certificate containing the signature of President Obama and was presented to the approximately 50 students who achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.333 to 3.499 throughout their academic career. Finally, the President’s Award for Academic Excellence were given to approximately 150 scholars who earned the honor. This gold certificate, containing the signature of President Obama was awarded to the students who achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.5 to 4.333 throughout their academic career.
      Finally, the night ended with the presentation of the department awards. These awards are given to the student that each department sees fit as having portrayed excellence in the classroom, whether it be through leadership in participation, grades, or effort. Some of the recipients included Anthony Lopez for Science, Andrew Hirsch for Gym, Justin Cooke for English, and Sarah Eberhardit for FACS.
     All in all, the night was an enormous success that should have left many students, parents, and faculty members proud of the seniors’ academic, extracurricular, and personal accomplishments. The class of 2009 featured many excellent human beings that through hard work and determination have made the school a better place.

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