CLASS of 2012 “To Accomplish Great Things, We Must Not Only Act, but Also Dream; Not Only Plan, but Also Believe.”
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Gwinnett County Public Schools Spring 2012 Celebrate! CLASS of 2012 “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.” Anatole France This publication captures a snapshot of the Class of 2012, with photos, facts, and just afew of the scholarships and awards garnered by members of this outstanding group of students. We know that many, many more of our students earned prestigious honors and scholarships that are not part of this publication. And we estimate that listing just the names of all of our graduates would take 66 pages! Congratulations to all of the members of the Class of 2012. We are so very proud of you! Table of Contents A Salute to Our Seniors 1 Scholarships and recognitions 8 Celebrating the Class of 2012 2 Graduation schedule 12 Valedictorians and salutatorians 5 Gwinnett Student Leadership Team 13 STAR students 7 Roll your cursor over the page to see links in the text. A SAlute to our SeniorS Graduation is only the beginning for more than 9,800 Gwinnett seniors as they leave high school, prepared for college, work, and life in the 21st century. As they look back at memories from their K–12 careers, members of GCPS’ Class of 2012 also have much to which they can look forward. Graduation exercises, for one. Most ceremonies for Gwinnett’s 21 high schools are scheduled at local stadiums or the Gwinnett Center, starting with the Phoenix High graduation on May 21, and concluding when that last South Gwinnett High grad crosses the stage on May 26. It’s no surprise that a high percentage of seniors— 86%— are headed to universities, colleges, and postsecondary schools in Georgia and around the country next fall, with 19% of those college-bound graduates offered at least one scholarship. As of April of 2012, more than $101 million in academic, athletic, and military scholarships has been offered. The majority of that amount, more than $67.8 million, was earned for academic achievement (not including HOPE awards or full scholarships for GCPS’ 11 Gates Millennium Scholars). This year’s senior student athletes earned more than $28.7 million in athletic scholarships. Thirteen seniors earned military academy appointments, earning more than $5 million in scholarships. And when we say these graduates are prepared for the future, look no further than their stellar academics. The Class of 2012 also includes 2,050 Honor Graduates, who are graduating with a grade percent average of 90 or better. Among these Honor Graduates are each school’s highest-ranking students— the valedictorian (1st in class) and the salutatorian (2nd in class). More than 41% of Gwinnett seniors took on the challenge and rigor of college-level Advanced Placement (AP) courses their last year in high school, taking a total of 11,426 AP classes. In addition, 203 seniors were dual-enrolled, earning both high school and college credit. Look for more fun facts, figures, and photos from the Class of 2012 throughout this issue. The Class of 2012 is Marvel-ous! Norcross High Central Gwinnett seniors get their superhero students receive on as the Avengers. Character Day was part of their yearbooks. the school’s Senior Week celebration. Sixteen different countries of origin are represented among Meadowcreek High’s Honor Graduates. 22% of Dacula High seniors were offered at least one scholarship. Peachtree Ridge boasts 30% of the senior class graduating with Honors, and 91% of seniors planning to attend college. Gwinnett seniors were offered more than $101 million in scholarships, about 67% in academic awards, 28% for athletics, and the remainder for military scholarships to U.S. service academies. Celebrating the Class of 2012 Fun facts, figures, and photos from our graduating seniors 22 seniors made it to school every day from kindergarten through 12th grade. (That’s 2,340 days. More than 15,000 hours or upwards of 900,000 minutes if Mill Creek High has one senior headed to anyone’s counting.) Holland for college and another going to college in Canada. In its first year, GCPS’ virtual charter high school, Gwinnett County Online Campus, has Gwinnett’s smallest graduating class Among Brookwood’s 2012 graduates are 12 sets of twins! with 12 students. With nearly 800 graduates, Brookwood has the district’s largest senior class. 2 8,431 GCPS seniors (or 86%) have postsecondary education plans for 2012–13. More than 9,800 students are on track to graduate. 42 Norcross seniors graduate with an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma, and 121 walk the stage with one or more IB Certificates to their credit. The 2,050 Honor Graduates (with a GPA of 90 or higher) make up 21% of the Class of 2012. Berkmar High students celebrate during Senior Week. Both grandfathers of a 2012 Grayson graduate were graduates of the original Grayson High. The Archer High Senior Class of 2012 Motto: Our lives are before us, the past is behind us, our memories are forever! 3 203 seniors were dual-enrolled, earning Peachtree Ridge parents took an both high school and college credit. evening in May to decorate their graduating senior’s locker. All GSMST graduates plan to attend college. The senior class of Collins Hill High has a total of 42,545 volunteer hours! Gwinnett County Public Schools FOUNDATION Donors make a difference! More than 600 community members, GCPS staff members, and corporate donors have stepped forward with financial support for the students of Gwinnett County Public Schools. A gift to the Gwinnett County Public Schools Foundation is the best way to ensure that current and future students are afforded the very best in educational opportunities. Among traditional Gwinnett high schools, North Gwinnett has Gifts may be directed to dedicated scholarship funds, the highest AP participation among its seniors, with 67% taking districtwide needs, or to a specific cluster or initiative. at least one AP class their senior year. 4 Please make your gift online today! 2012 Valedictorians and Salutatorian Archer High School Berkmar High School Jimmy Nguyen Valedictorian Melissa Thomas Caitlin Pingel Alexander Price Valedictorian Salutatorian Salutatorian Brookwood High School Central Gwinnett High School Shushmita Hoque Adrian Alabi Joseph Horenstein Sara Futch Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian Collins Hill High School Dacula High School Matthew Hester Giovanni Righi Cory Zeller Akeafa Momen Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian Duluth High School Grayson High School Reem Al-Atassi Salutatorian Ayshali Gauba Jason Gong Elizabeth Wood Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian 5 2012 Valedictorians and Salutatorian Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology Lanier High School Arsalan Sufi Lilian Chan Matthew DeWilde Meagan Shaw Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian Meadowcreek High School Mill Creek High School Austin Bernard Amal Punnoose Seung Kwan Baek Phung Thien Phung Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian Mountain View High School Norcross High School Claudette Bailey Kevin Schatell Leah Topper Andrew Alin Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian North Gwinnett High School Gwinnett County Online Campus Ho Lim Lee Matheus Mauricio Rhianna Hearne Cameron T. Hughes Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian 6 2012 Valedictorians and Salutatorian Parkview High School Peachtree Ridge High School Tami Feng Samuel Gowland Bria Fincher Kevin Oh Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian Shiloh High School South Gwinnett High School Javier Prusky Grinberg Debbie Boyett Jasper Tseng Stella Belonwu Valedictorian Salutatorian Valedictorian Salutatorian 2012 Star Students Each STAR (Student Teacher Achievement Recognition) student is the senior in the top 10% of his or her class with the highest SAT score. The Brookwood High and Norcross High STAR students tied for designation as Gwinnett County’s 2012 STAR Student for having the highest SAT scores among the districtwide Class of 2012. As part of the recognition, each STAR student selects a teacher as the educator who had a strong influence on his/her academic career. The state STAR program is sponsored by the Professional -As sociation of Georgia Educators, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, and the Georgia Department of Education. David Myers, Archer High School Ronan O’Brien, Mill Creek High School Erin Hinesley, Berkmar High School Sarah Choi, Mountain View High School Michael Song, Brookwood High School Andrew Alin, Norcross High School Joseph Horenstein, Central Gwinnett High School Ho Lee, North Gwinnett High School Kate Unsworth, Collins Hill High School Tami Mingjing Feng, Parkview High School Morgan Lundy, Dacula High School Jackson Winfrey, Peachtree Ridge High School Huage Kuo, Duluth High School Evan Mickler, Shiloh High School Jake Meadows, Grayson High School Jasper Tseng, South Gwinnett High School Aaron Patel, Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology Matt Dewilde, Lanier High School Huyen Nguyen, Meadowcreek High School 7 nAtionAl ScholArShip WinnerS 2012 Gates Millennium Scholars The Gates Millennium scholarship covers college tuition for the recipients’ entire college career, and is funded by a grant 2012 QuestBridge Scholars from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Honorees were Three Berkmar High seniors were selected as 2012 QuestBridge selected based on a review of their academic record, community National College Match Recipients, earning a full scholarship. involvement, demonstrated leadership, and their families’ need QuestBridge is a non-profit