2014-2015 Fox Valley Academic Team
Tara Cornwell
Cary-Grove High School
Hometown: Cary
Parents: Patricia Skach & Gregory Cornwell
Sponsor: Joshua Norten
Class rank: 1 out of 436
GPA: 4.88 on a weighted 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 35
Planned major: Biomedical engineering
Awards, honors: AP Scholar Award with Distinction 2014; National Merit Commended Scholar 2014; valedictorian
Personal statement: “My life goal is to help women in Third World countries who are slighted in many areas of their lives, specifically politically, socially, and even in medical standards, because of the sexist status of the current world. This feminist passion was actually nurtured throughout my childhood, where my accomplishments in and out of the classroom proved the validity, as well as the necessity, for gender equality.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “Tara ranks first in a class of 440 students. Tara 'gets it' and 'catches on quick' - call it what you want; she makes learning look easy, yet she still pours fully into each course. Unyielding effort and brilliance has bestowed to Tara valedictorian status while pursuing the most rigorous coursework available.”
Hallie Gaitsch
Batavia High School
Hometown: Batavia
Parents: Tom Gaitsch & Lisa Keefe
Sponsor: Steven Lesniak
Class rank: 1 out of 502
GPA: 4.375 on a 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 35
Planned major: Biology
Awards, honors: National Merit Commended Scholar, National French Honor Society, National English Honor Society
Personal statement: “Working in the field of astrophysics has given me an invaluable foundation in the application of scientific reasoning and the creativity and intensity of research. I have spent almost two years doing science alongside graduate students and professional scientists. I will undoubtedly utilize these research skills throughout my medical career.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “Hallie is a member of the Chicago Youth Symphony Honors Encore Orchestra as well as a private music teacher and working musician. Additionally, she is working in Fermi National Laboratory's Astrophysics Department, where she is conducting a Dark Energy Survey. While at Fermilab, she has conducted research on gravitation lensing of galaxy clusters, as well as authored a paper on the topic.”
Iva Gramatikov
St. Charles East High School
Hometown: St. Charles
Parents: Ivaylo Gramatikov
Sponsor: Sheila Vining
Class rank: 8 out of 589
GPA: 5.674 on a 5.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 35; SAT: 2250
Planned major: Bioengineering
Awards, honors: National Merit Scholar, Illinois State Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction
Personal statement: “My family has a tradition: when a child is born and able to crawl, they set out a bevy of professional trinkets, like gavels, wrenches, calculators, etc. Whichever item the child first grabs is seen as an indicator of what type of job they will have in the future. Maybe it was a self-fulfilling prophecy, as each of us kids have heard our stories a thousand times, but I immediately went for the stethoscope, and ever since I was a child, I've dreamed of becoming a doctor.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “Iva's biggest contribution to the school has been through her involvement with our Peer Leadership Program. The Peer Leadership Program matches an upperclassman with an 'at risk' freshman student and they meet with each other on a daily basis throughout the entire school year.”
Harry Hochwarter
Huntley High School
Hometown: Algonquin
Parents: John & Genevieve Hochwarter
Sponsor: Matt Liberatore
Class rank: 7 out of 695
GPA: 4.498 on a 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 35
Planned major: Computer science
Awards, honors: Varsity Math Team captain, varsity Academic Team, Mock Trial team
Personal statement: “During the past two summers, I worked as a research assistant at UCLA. I coded, entered, and analyzed verbal responses to free association and creativity tasks. I spent over one hundred hours counting, organizing, and analyzing thousands of responses.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “One of the most impressive qualities about Harry is that he perseveres like no high school student I have seen. During his sophomore year, Harry encountered a medical issue that required him to be homebound for some time. His course rigor was maxed with 4 Advanced Placement classes and demanded an abundance of homework. Harry kept up with the demands and showed superior organizational skills.”
Quinn Lewis
Illinois Math and Science Academy
Hometown: Glen Ellyn
Parents: Shawn Lewis & Theresa Szeto
Sponsor: Julia Husen
Class rank: Not given
GPA: Not given
Test scores: ACT: 36
Planned major: Biomedical engineering
Awards, honors: Illinois State Scholar, National AP Scholar, Gold Level Award, National Spanish Exam Level IV
Personal statement: “It is my goal to revolutionize health care. Medicine continues to make strides toward digital operations and automated treatments. These improvements are made possible with biomedical engineering. As a translational force, I believe biomedical engineering has the power to take the findings from emerging research and put them into practice, creating solutions for the most pressing health care issues.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “Quinn Lewis can be called a Renaissance man due to his versatile skills and passions. While IMSA students are known for having unusual talents, I cannot think of another senior this year with such a diverse array of interests. To say that Quinn loves to learn would be an understatement.”
Parth Patel
Huntley High School
Hometown: Huntley
Parents: Prakash & Pravina Patel
Sponsor: Matt Liberatore
Class rank: 1 out of 6.26
GPA: 4.9 on a weighted 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 34
Planned major: Astrophysics
Awards, honors: Illinois Future Business Leaders of America State President, National AP Scholar, OMNI Youth Leadership Conference Co-Curriculum Developer
Personal statement: “My life goal is to become president of the United States, but perhaps more realistically, change the world through the pursuit of medicine. Speaking with Dr. Rifat Hasina at the University of Chicago about her view on cancer research was the greatest learning experience I had, inspiring me to become an oncologist and solve a problem that people should not be giving their lives up for.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “On top of his full load of classes, Parth has taken it upon his own to take five additional independent study courses from MIT and Yale. He is the definition of curious learner in my book. I have actually used this line in recommendations previous, but Parth has redefined my standards of the word.”
Robert Stephens
Marmion Academy
Hometown: Bartlett
Parents: Robert & Diane Stephens
Sponsor: Joseph Large
Class rank: 1 out of 125
GPA: 4.874 on a weighted 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 35
Planned major: Electrical engineering
Awards, honors: 2013 United States Army Academic Bowl National Champion; George C. Marshall Leadership and Academic Award; second place, ICTM State Math Contest, Oral Presentation on Vector Geometry
Personal statement: “My broad education in STEM areas, the classics and music have provided me a unique context as I prepare to move forward into an engineering career. The combination of technical know-how, with the creativity bequeathed me by music and the context from classical studies, will allow me to work as an engineer who improves the lives of people around me.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “His analytical thinking skills are superior, and he works hard to understand the material at an in-depth level. Stephens takes his course work very seriously. He participates frequently, and often offers insightful solutions that other students do not see.”
Rachael Valiunas
Geneva High School
Hometown: Geneva
Parents: Mary Nordstrom & Peter Valiunas
Sponsor: Victoria Holbrook
Class rank: 1 out of 485
GPA: 477 on a weighted 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 34
Planned major: Bioengineering
Awards, honors: National Merit Commended Scholar, AP Scholar, WYSE Team Regionals Chemistry competition
Personal statement: “My junior year, I had to quit a few of my extracurricular activities to focus caring for my grandfather the last year of his life. It was from this experience that I realized I wanted to study bioengineering. My grandfather was prescribed a medical regimen for his bedsores that was itself painful. To create a less irritating treatment for him, I combined burn-relief gel with his other prescribed ointments. This modification, albeit simple, gave him temporary relief from his bedsores.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “Rachael has earned the respect of her peers and her instructors. Math teacher John Thomas says, 'In 17 years of teaching, she is one of the brightest math minds I have ever met. She is intuitive, insightful, inquisitive and intelligent.'”
Alex Vonderhaar
Aurora Central Catholic
Hometown: St. Charles
Parents: Chris & Carol Vonderhaar
Sponsor: Bridget Buckley
Class rank: 1 out of 149
GPA: 4.39 on a weighted 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 36; SAT: 2120
Planned major: Electrical engineering
Awards, honors: President's Education Award; first place in American Mathematics Competition; National Merit Finalist
Personal statement: “Mathematics has always been my strongest subject. I had learned simple multiplication by the first grade, even though it wouldn't be part of my school's curriculum for a couple more years. Besides being my best subject, it was also my favorite subject and I found it very enjoyable. I later joined the MathCounts team in junior high and competed with other schools in my area, often placing individually and as a team.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “Alex is a National Merit Finalist, an Illinois State Scholar, and an AP Scholar. On top of his excellent achievement here at school, Alex accomplished a feat that very few can share. Alex scored a perfect 36 on his ACT. I cannot stress how proud we were as a school community to embrace Alex's accomplishments.”
Jaafar Zaidi
Hampshire High School
Hometown: Elgin
Parents: Abu & Shabnam Zaidi
Sponsor: Kate Sheehan
Class rank: 1 out of 294
GPA: 6.11 on a weighted 4.0 scale
Test scores: ACT: 35; SAT: 2220
Planned major: Biochemistry
Awards, honors: High honor roll seven semesters, AP Scholar, National Merit finalist
Personal statement: “In my aspirations to become a neurosurgeon, I see many years of schooling and subsequent years of hard work. Yet I view what others would call a grueling sentence as a path of opportunity - a path that can excite and challenge me.”
Sponsor's endorsement: “His intention to pursue a career in the medical field prompted him to petition the Math and Science Divisional to add AP Biology to the curriculum. A compromise was made and Jaafar was able to take AP Biology as an independent study course under the direction of the Divisional. His perseverance in finding a way to meet his academic interests served as a catalyst for two other students to also take AP Biology through an independent study.”