Honorable mentions: DuPage County Leadership Team, 2017-2018
Husna Ahmed
Islamic Foundation School
Hometown: Berkeley
Class: Senior
Parents: Syed Ahmed and Talath Anjum
Sponsor: Yasmin Jamal, math teacher
Community service: Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, volunteer; Islamic Foundation High School, graduation day volunteer; Islamic Foundation, service day participant
Chris Bauer
St. Francis High School
Hometown: Lombard
Class: Senior
Parents: Bill and Joyce Bauer
Sponsor: Trudy Rigney, director of guidance
Community service: Lombard Historical Society, Eagle Scout Project at the Sheldon Peck Homestead in Lombard that involved replacing a splitrail fence enclosing half of the perimeter of the property; mission trip to Indianapolis, Indiana; Boy Scout Troop 202, senior patrol leader; student government
Carolyn Boatfield
Fenton High School
Hometown: Bensenville
Class: Senior
Sponsor: Nancy Connor, counselor
Community service: Tourette Syndrome Camp USA, counselor; Northeast DuPage Special Recreation Association, camp counselor; Fenton High School Special Olympics & Interact Club; Tioga School, ESL Support Group baby-sitting; Fenton High School, English tutor
Gwyneth Burns
Benet Academy
Hometown: Elmhurst
Class: Senior
Parents: Stacey and Kevin Burns
Sponsor: Amy Wesley, college counselor
Community service: Access Sports, mentor and coach for young athletes with special needs; Mission trip, traveled to Guatemala on a school-organized mission trip; Immaculate Conception Parish, altar server and a Eucharistic minister; S.A.L.T. campus ministry program; Christmas drive through student government
Isabel Coyne
Montini Catholic High School
Hometown: Bensenville
Class: Senior
Parents: Tina and Patrick
Sponsor: Nora Kinney
Community service: BWFCA (Pop Warner), volunteered as a cheer coach and taught girls basic skills and routines for competitions.
Catherine Franch
West Chicago Community High School
Hometown: West Chicago
Class: Senior
Parents: Donald and Ana Franch
Sponsor: Nick Caltagirone, social studies teacher
Community service: Northern Illinois Food Bank, participates in the food bank's VolunTeen leadership program; Fellowship Church of Carol Stream, preschool teacher; Vacation Bible school through Fellowship Church of Carol Stream, group leader for third- and fourth-grade boys
Yanni Gu
Timothy Christian High School
Hometown: Berkeley
Class: Senior
Community service: Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, volunteer at the ER, greets patients, leads families into rooms, transports patients in wheelchairs; Humboldt Community Dinner, member of the planning committee; Park Place of Elmhurst, volunteer to talk, play games, and spend time with the senior residents; peer tutor; Elmhurst Christian Reformed Church, nursery volunteer
Ashley Hornig
Naperville Central High School
Hometown: Naperville
Class: Senior
Parents: Catherine and Eric Hornig
Sponsor: Barbara Watson
Community service: Edward Hospital, volunteered escorting and helping visitors find their friends and loved ones in the hospital; St. Raphael Church teen choir; St. Raphael Catholic Church, youth group retreat leader; St. Raphael annual Santa Breakfast, helped children with crafts and face-paint; Red Rage, student leader/officer of the school's pep club
Cara Johnson
St. Francis High School
Hometown: Streamwood
Class: Senior
Parents: Todd and Cheryl Johnson
Sponsor: Trudy Rigney, director of guidance
Community service: Group Mission trips with Good Shepherd United Methodist youth group, participated in mission trip to Mount Vernon, Illinois; vacation Bible school at Good Shepherd United Methodist Church, volunteer; Girl Scout Day Camp in Harvard, Illinois, a program aide assigned to lead a group of younger Girl Scouts; Gigi's Playhouse in Hoffman Estates, volunteer; U-46 Bluestars, volunteered as a Special Olympics junior coach
George Joseph
Glenbard North High School
Hometown: Carol Stream
Class: Senior
Parents: Joji Thomas & Mini Joseph
Sponsor: Lindsay Schultz, mathematics department
Community service: The Quad tutoring center; The Write Place tutoring center; District 87 school board student liaison; Student Advisory Panel; Fermilab, volunteer as a member of the Monday Strike Team
Maggie Kravchuk
Wheaton North High School
Hometown: Wheaton
Class: Senior
Parents: Mark and Mary Kravchuk
Sponsor: Kimberly Wittersheim, counselor
Community service: Water With Blessings Inc., helped organize a fundraiser that raised money for the nonprofit organization; Bair Lake Bible Camp, volunteer; Charter for Compassion, third-grade class leader; Link Crew, helped freshmen transition into high school; math resource room tutor
Isabella Ledonne
Willowbrook High School
Hometown: Lombard
Class: Senior
Parents: Michael and Laurie Ledonne
Sponsor: Lourdes Piña
Community service: St. Genesius Productions, volunteer choreographer for children's drama plays; National Honor Society, performing service acts for the community and school; New Beginnings Leader, upperclassmen mentoring underclassmen to assimilate to high school; SASED Performer, musical performances for special-needs children through Tri-M
Brianna McAloon
Lake Park High School
Hometown: Bloomingdale
Class: Senior
Parents: Sally Engstrom-McAloon, Matthew McAloon
Sponsor: Taylor Severino, school counselor
Community service: Illinois Association of Student Councils, work with fellow state officers to host a state service project, leadership workshops and an annual convention; Northeast District Student Council, assisted in service projects and events; J. Kyle Braid Foundation; Distinguished Citizens Breakfast, played a role in running the event; Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership Awards
Tim McCann
IC Catholic Prep
Hometown: Elmhurst
Class: Senior
Parents: Mary and Brian McCann
Sponsor: Joe Paolelli, teacher
Community service: Visitation Grade School in Elmhurst, coaching; Elmhurst Peer Jury, senior juror; Cebrin Goodman Teen Institute; IC Catholic Prep Busse Woods service trip, cutting down and burning plants and trees; TLC Camp volunteer
Yousuf Mitchell
Montini Catholic High School
Hometown: Plainfield
Class: Senior
Parents: Buthaina Jabir
Sponsor: Dr. Kisicki, English instructor
Community service: Plainfield Public Library, helped put away books, clean, and organize events for children over the summer; Habitat for Humanity, traveled to Ohio to help build a house for a family in need; International Samaritan, traveled to Managua, Nicaragua, to help build a house for a family in need; Feed My Starving Children
Octavio Munoz
Glenbard West High School
Hometown: Glendale Heights
Class: Senior
Sponsor: Jeremiah Wiencek, director of school counseling
Community service: Glenbard Latino Organization, serves as a student interpreter for parents during parent-teacher conferences and coordinates other student interpreters; Spanish Honor Society, Spanish tutor; Glenbard Latino Organization, helps organize collection drive at school; Spanish Honor Society, helped organize a fundraiser to help people affected by the earthquakes in Mexico; St. Matthew Parish, helped assemble holiday care kits for soldiers.
Michelle Osagie
Lisle Senior High School
Hometown: Lisle
Class: Senior
Parents: James and Mabel Osagie
Sponsor: Kendra Meyer, school counselor
Community service: Partners for Parks Foundation, volunteered for local race held to raise money for community's parks; Eyes to the Skies, volunteered to help set up chairs and tables, wipe down chairs and tables, and transport different concessions to tents during the festival; Lisle Public Library, volunteered to help library employees by cleaning, sorting and putting away books and brainstorming events to promote reading; Lombard Assembly of God Church, volunteered as a classroom assistant for the church's youth program; Peer tutors, volunteered to assist students at the high school and junior high
Cassandra Payne
Glenbard East High School
Hometown: Lombard
Class: Senior
Parents: Dwight and Barbara Payne
Sponsor: Christopher Pietsch, AP U.S. history teacher
Community service: Silver Birch Ranch; The Compass Church Wheaton, AWANA Club volunteer; Glenbard East Music Association, concert usher; Experience East, lead school tours
Alyssa R. Ramos
Addison Trail High School
Hometown: Addison
Class: Senior
Parents: Gia & Isaias Ramos
Sponsor: Kevin Redding, director of guidance
Community service: National Honor Society, various service opportunities throughout Addison; Tri-M Music Honor Society, volunteer service opportunities for music programs throughout the community; Blazer Ambassadors, tutoring; Blazettes Summer Camp volunteer; Go Pink or Go Home breast cancer awareness events
Cooper Reif
Glenbard South High School
Hometown: Glen Ellyn
Class: Senior
Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Tim Reif
Sponsor: Tim McGrath, school counselor
Community service: Key Club, helped organize service events around the community; student council, helped organize homecoming; Council of Presidents, helped organize a music video that highlights the school's club and athletics; American Diabetes Association, youth ambassador; National Honor Society, volunteered to help run the Kids Zone at the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes
Eli Rubenstein
Wheaton Warrenville South High School
Hometown: Wheaton
Class: Senior
Parents: Alec and DeAnn Rubenstein
Sponsor: Kelly Ehrhardt, guidance counselor
Community service: Key Club, organizes and coordinates volunteering events for our members of the club; People's Resource Center, organized a book drive that collected around 300 books for the center; People's Resource Center, organized a clothing drive that collected hundreds of articles of clothing; People's Resource Center, volunteer; National Honor Society, participated in service activities around the school and community
Bijoy Shah
Glenbard West High School
Hometown: Glen Ellyn
Class: Senior
Parents: Rashesh and Vaishali Shah
Sponsor: Natalie Rubino, school counselor
Community service: Easter Seals speech team, helped disabled children learn to write long speeches, perform, act, and build confidence during a summer speech camp; One Voice Outreach Choir, performs at retirement homes; Food Pantry Drive, manage schoolwide food drive during the winter and spring; This Run's for Jack, volunteer; West Students Making a Difference, help with various events throughout the year
Umar Siddiqui
Islamic Foundation School
Hometown: Elmhurst
Parents: Mohammed Siddiqui and Sabeeha Malik
Sponsor: Abida Banu, science teacher
Community service: Elmhurst Hospital, volunteered at the main entrance; Geometry tutoring; food pantry, volunteered to sort and arrange food; Habitat for Humanity, volunteered to clean streets and wrap gifts; forest preserve, cleaned up trash and litter
Christopher Turner
Glenbard East High School
Hometown: Lombard
Parents: Jim and Jan Turner
Sponsor: Bryan Witte, school counselor
Community service: Camp Rock, summer camp counselor; Saint Genesius Productions, assisting in the direction and production of theatrical performances
Dionisia Vassos
Addison Trail High School
Hometown: Addison
Class: Senior
Parents: Dominick and Christine Vassos
Sponsor: Tina Gastes, guidance counselor
Community service: National Honor Society, community service; Key Club, community service; St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, community service; Feed My Starving Children; Amita Health Care
Matthew Vaughn
Naperville North High School
Hometown: Lisle
Class: Senior
Parents: Ed Vaughn and Dennise Vaughn
Sponsor: Robert Platt, teacher
Community service: DuPage Valley Special Athletes Unified Golf, helped create a program in which a Special Olympics athlete would be paired with one of their peers to compete in a golf tournament; peer tutoring, volunteered as a peer tutor during lunch hours; DuPage Valley Special Athletes Unified Soccer, volunteer as a peer in unified soccer; DuPage Valley Special Athletes Flag Football, volunteer as a coach; Adaptive P.E. Program, work as a leader for the special-needs P.E. classes
Francesca Wagoner
Lisle Senior High School
Hometown: Lisle
Class: Senior
Parents: Monica and Scott Wagoner
Sponsor: Kendra Meyer, school guidance counselor
Community service: Eyes to the Skies, volunteered to help set up, take down, and sell drinks during the festival; Extended Hands and Feet, volunteered to reach the homeless population in the community to provide basic resources and spiritual needs; Naperville Church of Christ, Bible school volunteer; Benet volleyball camp, volunteer coach; Next Level Athlete Volleyball Training, volunteered to coach kids on the weekend
Brianna White
Willowbrook High School
Hometown: Villa Park
Class: Senior
Parents: Jim and Laurie White
Sponsor: Scott Forcash, school counselor
Community service: Brookfield Zoo's King Conservation Science Scholars, educate guests about the animals at the zoo and conservation; Illinois Leadership Seminar, worked on the operations team and helped set up and take down events; WBHS Progress Program, assisted in educating incoming freshman about the high school; WBHS's Summer Theatre Camp, helped to teach children about theater
Josie Wooldridge
Hinsdale Central High School
Hometown: Hinsdale
Class: Senior
Parents: Jacqueline and Alan Wooldridge
Sponsor: Gia Maniscalco, school counselor
Community service: Praying Pelican Missions, mission trip to Tucson, Arizona; The Community House, autism walk volunteer; Trinity Presbyterian Church, volunteer in the nursery and prekindergarten Sunday school co-teacher; Middle school youth group leader; Trinity Presbyterian Church, awareness and fundraising for orphanages in Haiti