Honorable mentions: Northwest Suburban Leadership Team, 2017-2018
Gregory Baranov
Hoffman Estates High School
Hometown: Schaumburg
Class: Senior
Parents: Sergey Baranov and Tatiana Badera
Sponsor: Ryan B. Brown, English teacher
Community service: Provided leadership in an outdoor camp setting through ORPR Camp, creating activities for campers and leading them throughout the day; volunteers with the Schaumburg Township Food Pantry sorting food and making sure people who can't afford nutritious meals get the food they need; is a member of the National Honor Society and Business Professionals of America.
Nathan Beltran
Elk Grove High School
Hometown: Elk Grove Village
Class: Senior
Parents: Robert Rheinschmidt, (uncle)
Sponsor: Anthony Miocic, college and career counselor
Community service: Worked as a volunteer cheer coach and created a routine for fourth-graders to perform; participated on a panel and in-group discussions during a teacher-led institute day; volunteered with Freshmen First Days, which helps freshmen feel comfortable in their new school.
Milka Cassandra Deinla
St. Edward Central Catholic High School
Hometown: Schaumburg
Class: Sophomore
Parents: Mary Grace Deinla and Reno Deinla
Sponsor: AnnMarie Dufelmeier, English teacher
Community service: Organizing Art Club's "Color the Holidays" service project; volunteering at Feed My Starving Children; organizing a mental health/suicidal awareness club; volunteering with St. Hubert Youth Ministry; Student Ambassador Club, training and helping future Green Wave students; French Club; German Club; Spanish Club; SADD Club; Scholastic Bowl; WYSE; Book Club; and Rotary Interact Club
Patrick Faley
John Hersey High School
Hometown: Arlington Heights
Class: Senior
Parents: Timothy and Jennifer Faley
Sponsor: Mrs. Jackie Ballarini
Community service: Worked with several classmates to design a webpage for A Soldier's Journey Home, an organization that builds houses for disabled veterans; coached a middle school Crime Busters Science Olympiad, running the weekly practices along with helping students to prepare for events; plays with the St. James youth choir at weekly Masses; teaches kids basic chess through the Olive Chess Club.
Maleeha Farzansyed
Maine East High School
Hometown: Des Plaines
Class: Senior
Parents: Samreen Syed & Syed Farzan
Sponsor: Wendy Reitz, English teacher, National Honor Society sponsor
Community service: Through the Discrimination Project, created a video against stereotype and discrimination; volunteered with the Center for Conservation Leadership and created a stewardship project in the community on the importance of recycling batteries; volunteered with MCYAF, a drug awareness program; works as a teacher's assistant.
Robert Grassé
Schaumburg High School
Hometown: Schaumburg
Class: Senior
Parents: Kris and Ed Grassé
Sponsor: Carl Zielinski, Assistant Scout Master, Troop 493
Community service: Worked with fellow Boy Scouts on an Eagle project at Spring Valley Nature Center laying down a boardwalk; volunteered to work a Math Night at Rupley Elementary School; participated in events at Cantigny Park in Wheaton and Trickster Gallery in Schaumburg for Native American veterans from around the country; volunteered at Feed My Starving Children; helps to make brown bag lunches for people in the community who are less fortunate through Christ the King Lutheran Church.
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
Hanna Kunin
Adlai E. Stevenson High School
Hometown: Buffalo Grove
Class: Senior
Parents: Yana Vaysman and Oleg Kunin
Sponsor: Dave Eddy, student activities coordinator
Community service: School board representative; student council executive member/officer; National Honor Society: volunteering at blood drives, nursing homes and elementary schools; Spanish Honor Society, including serving as a student teacher at Washington Elementary School.
Julia Murray
John Hersey High School
Hometown: Arlington Heights
Class: Senior
Parents: John and Leslie Murray
Sponsor: Mark Gunther, teacher
Community service: Through the school's Service Over Self Club, is involved in the community by helping seniors, high schoolers and people with special needs through service work that includes park district children's programs, veterans initiatives, blood drives, feeding the hungry, helping the homeless and working with Super Buddies; through the Youth Ministry at St. James Parish was involved in two separate mission trips over the course of two summers; volunteers as a Sunday school aide at St. James Church; volunteered at Camp Soar, an overnight camp for those with special needs.
Anne Marie Nalley
Palatine High School
Hometown: Palatine
Class: Senior
Parents: John and Anne Marie Nalley
Sponsor: Mike Alther, assistant principal
Community service: As a member of the President's Club, helped prepare for a senior boys school spirit competition that raised funds for charity; helped to decorate for and played with children who attended Palatine High School's Trick or Treat Fest; volunteered with a local eye doctor making phone calls, cleaning the displays and organizing the office for Senior Life Hour; as a member of student council and through Partners for Our Community worked with Roots, a garden accessible to members of the community.
Capria Nordquist
Barrington High School
Hometown: Barrington
Class: Senior
Parents: Lisa Petrilli and Jeff Nordquist
Sponsor: William M. Rohner, English teacher
Community service: Volunteers with the Lunch Buddies program; visits local seniors through the Generations Crossroads program; volunteered with the Barrington Area Conservation Trust; teaches community safety to schoolchildren at Safety Town; mentored middle school students in social and emotional well-being through the Snowflake program.
Eduardo Orozco
Palatine High School
Hometown: Arlington Heights
Class: Senior
Parents: Antelmo Orozco and Micaela Orozco
Sponsor: Alonso Ramirez, counselor
Community service: As vice president of student council, helped start a fundraiser to raise money for those affected by recent hurricanes; as a member of the President's Club, helped prepare for a senior boys school spirit competition that raised funds for charity; volunteered through Partnership of Our Communities on Better Together to help families in need of school supplies; serves as an executive member of the Teen Advisory board of Partnership of Our Communities; as a member of Project Excel, worked with classmates to plan and run a field day event for physically disabled students.
Shyam Sai
Illinois Math and Science Academy
Hometown: Rolling Meadows
Class: Senior
Parents: Aswini Das and Rama Gundaiah
Sponsor: Kara Molenhouse, school counselor
Community service: Writing up math problems and teaching kids of all ages every Sunday as founder, CEO and COO of Midwest Math Circle, a nonprofit designed to teach suburban youth the joy of math; IMSA residential student liaison, helping dorm students adjust and bond; IMSA head peer tutor, including managing other peer tutors and setting up study sessions; leadership intern for Camp Invention, organizing activities and overseeing campers in developing their engineering, inventive and teamwork skills; Northwest Special Recreation Association, helping kids and teens with special needs enjoy activities such as bowling; cancer biology research at IMSA; Technology Society Mathematica president; Math Team; Mending Minds Through Mindfulness Club; Science Olympiad; and Student Inquiry and Research project
Bhavi M. Shah
Hoffman Estates High School
Hometown: Streamwood
Class: Senior
Parents: Matish & Manisha Shah
Sponsor: Kelly Carroll, English teacher
Community service: Works with Young Jains of America and participates in biweekly calls with people from all over the Midwest to plan youth activities; volunteers through the Jain Society of Metropolitan Chicago serving food; volunteered doing office work at the Law Offices of Kiki Mosely; through the Higgins Education Center, volunteers helping children with their homework; at St. Alexius Hospital, volunteers escorting visitors to patient rooms and taking comfort dogs for patient visits.
Elizabeth Sofinet
Maine West High School
Hometown: Des Plaines
Class: Senior
Parents: John & Maria Sofinet
Sponsor: Audrey Haugan, principal, and Randy Harper, teacher
Community service: Volunteered with Inspiration Corporation Cafe, cooking, taking orders, serving and cleaning up, all while interacting with guests; volunteers tutoring, hosting parties, playing games and building relationships through RefugeeOne, an after-school program for refugee children; volunteered with Feed My Starving Children packaging food to combat global hunger; serves on the board of Voice for the Nameless, a human rights club that advocates for social justice.
Nitinshankar Subramanian
James B. Conant High School
Hometown: Elk Grove Village
Class: Senior
Parents: Subramanian Sankaran and Nirmala Subramanian
Sponsor: Matt P. Wiley, counselor
Community service: Founded Two Way Tutoring in conjunction with Asha for Education, a nonprofit organization that tutors kids in ACT/SAT and then donates the earned money to rural schools in India; serves as one of 18 student representatives on the Illinois school board of education; as a member of the Tri-M Music Honor Society, participates in community concerts, including performing for seniors at Friendship Village; through the National Business Honor Society, volunteers at Feed My Starving Children and various other community events.
Isaiah Summers
James B. Conant High School
Hometown: Schaumburg
Class: Senior
Parents: Charles and Sally Summers
Sponsor: Matt Wiley, counselor
Community service: Worked as a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity of Northern Fox Valley performing construction work building homes for people in need; organizes and distributes food and clothing at the food pantry at Christian Life Church in Mount Prospect; through Shelter Inc., volunteered working at a party for foster children; performed music during a fundraising event for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation; through the Learning Through Community Action Program, organized the music library at Conant High School and volunteered at band activities.
Hailey Szydlowski
Buffalo Grove High School
Hometown: Buffalo Grove
Class: Senior
Parents: Kathy and Jim Szydlowski
Sponsor: Rich Schram, student council sponsor
Community service: Served as a Peer Juror during junior and senior year; helped organize Faculty Follies, a variety show to benefit The Circle of Caring, which helps teachers dealing with personal struggles; has participated in the district's Intergenerational Dinner Dance since sophomore year; participated in Project Isaiah collecting food and basic household items for the less fortunate; homecoming.
Cody Weigand
Saint Viator High School
Hometown: Arlington Heights
Class: Senior
Parents: Pamela Karahalios and Dale Weigand
Sponsor: Stephanie Spiewak, counselor
Community service: Has volunteered for three years at Lutheran Home; volunteered working with children at St. Peter Lutheran Church & School, assisting with games and activities.
Frank Wiest-Puchala
Adlai E. Stevenson High School
Hometown: Long Grove
Class: Senior
Parents: Michelle Wiest and Tom Puchala
Sponsor: Dave Eddy, student activities coordinator
Community service: Student Council Community Building; Freshman Mentor Program; National Honor Society service events.
Brisa Zamudio
Wheeling High School
Hometown: Prospect Heights
Class: Senior
Parents: Maria Mata
Sponsor: Ziomara Gil, Student Council adviser
Community service: Volunteers helping struggling students with their school work and classes through Lit Lab; volunteers helping freshmen adjust to life at Wheeling High School as a Peer Mentor; works on various volunteer projects through student council.
Dyana Zapata
Wheeling High School
Hometown: Prospect Heights
Class: Sophomore
Parents: Maria Zapata
Sponsor: Ziomara Gil, student council adviser
Community service: As a freshman class volunteer, worked on various functions, including concessions, selling for fundraisers and pep rallies; fundraiser for women with cancer; helped coordinate and run a movie night for elementary school students; performed various roles in volunteering with the Wheeling Canned Food Drive.