Northwest Suburban Leadership Team Honorable Mentions, 2018-2019

Ayushi Balan

Fremd High School

Hometown: Palatine

Class: Senior

Parents: Dinesh and Meenakshi Balan

Sponsor: Theresa Christensen, English teacher

Community service: Alexian Brothers Hospital in Elk Grove Village, head volunteer at the East and West desks; co-president of student council, organized winter gala to benefit the American Heart Association; Alexian Brothers teen advisory board; volunteers with Schaumburg-based Feed My Starving Children; executive board member and head delegate of the Model United Nations team; editor of the Viking Logue school newspaper; founding member of the TedEd Club; National Honor Society

Amanda Behles

Prospect High School

Hometown: Arlington Heights

Class: Senior

Parents: Mike and Mary Behles

Sponsor: Timothy Wolowiec, special education teacher

Community service: Helped to establish Life of a Knight, a program that provides Prospect students with the information they need to be successful in every aspect of their life; visits Prospect's feeder middle school to promote Life of a Knight; has participated in Give Back Days by helping with a basketball clinic and cleaning up trash at a local park; Link leader, mentoring freshmen students; PADS, helping to set up the shelter at a local church; District 214 President's Student Advisory Council

Clare Brown

Willows Academy

Hometown: Arlington Heights

Class: Senior

Parents: David and Kristen Brown

Sponsor: Cammy Czarnik, assistant principal/dean

Community service: Willows Academy Service Club, service projects for the poor, the community, the elderly, and U.S. troops; class trustee, class president and Executive Student Council vice president; camp counselor at Camp Tuck Leadership Camp, working with middle school students; Our Lady of the Wayside Youth Ministry, CORE leader; National Honor Society, Service Club and Student Athletic Council

Vincent J. Carso

John Hersey High School

Hometown: Arlington Heights

Class: Senior

Parents: Nicolina Carso and Greg Carso

Sponsor: Eric Johnson, physics teacher

Community service: St. James Parish Youth Ministry Mission Team, has renovated and built housing for individuals in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, with Catholic Heart work camp; volunteers providing meals and cleanup for PADS; as a member Service Over Self Club book and toy drive; Special Olympics volunteer; as National Honor Society officer volunteers with various organization and fundraising events including a Gingerbread Build where the proceeds benefited Soldier Journey Home; Chess Club, Model UN, and varsity football

Catherine Chan

Wheeling High School

Hometown: Arlington Heights

Class: Senior

Parents: Richmond Chan and Han Fen Chan

Sponsor: Katherine Weber, science teacher

Community service: Student council president; provides music for Sunday Masses as choir cantor at St. Edna Catholic Church; National Honor Society; volunteers with Days for Girls and the Cloth Connection Outreach; Literacy Lab tutor; Relay For Life; District 214 Honors Orchestra; Chamber Orchestra

Jamie Rae Cuartero

Hoffman Estates High School

Hometown: Schaumburg

Class: Senior

Parents: Janet Cuartero and Raymunn Cuartero

Sponsor: Juan Medina, Art Department chairman

Community service: Technical production crew at Willow Creek Community Church, on the team that is in charge of the video broadcast during church programs; volunteers with Best Buddies; National Honor Society, Math Team, Thespians and the Social Studies Club; Scholastic Bowl; high school auditorium tech crew

Demi Dumovich

Glenbard North High School

Hometown: Hanover Park

Class: Senior

Parents: Andrew Dumovich

Sponsor: Kim Munro, counselor

Community service: Theatre Honor Society, head officer; St. Walter Bible Camp, crew leader/organizer; Civics Club, organized protest of gun violence; volunteered for political campaigns; School Board Student Liaison

Loretta (Lorie) K. Ewert

Buffalo Grove High School

Hometown: Arlington Heights

Class: Senior

Parents: Jennifer Spitz and Steven Ewert

Sponsor: Jamie Lala, special education teacher, case manager

Community service: Community Service Club executive leader; Peer Juror for three years; helped pack and deliver Thanksgiving meals to low-income families; volunteered with Community Threads, sorting clothing, books, jewelry, toys and decorations and helping store customers; volunteered with A-OK, helping seniors with home maintenance and yard work; Interact Community Service Club

Victoria Jozwiak

Carmel Catholic High School

Hometown: Lincolnshire

Class: Senior

Parents: Bob Jozwiak and Mary Jozwiak

Sponsor: Jack Waddle, social studies teacher

Community service: Church of St. Mary Vacation Bible School volunteer; special education volunteer at The Cove School; Student Council drives including blood drive, clothing drive, canned-food drive, Glass Slipper Project, and the Rice Bowl Tournament; Open House/Shadow Day volunteer

Amelia Lee

Stevenson High School

Lake County Leadership Team member

Hometown: Lincolnshire

Class: Senior

Parents: Rebecca Lee and Marc Lee

Sponsor: Dave Eddy, student activities coordinator

Community service: Student council Give-A-Thon; helped reform Transfer Buddies program for transfer students; Freshman Mentor program; National Honor Society; Classroom Without Walls trips to Indonesia and Malaysia

Anna Linscott

John Hersey High School

Hometown: Arlington Heights

Class: Senior

Parents: Rebecca and Brian Linscott

Sponsor: Samantha Frank, social science teacher

Community service: As a teen cantor serves as head of the Ecclesiastical Choir, helps lead baptisms and assists with preparation of the liturgy at St. James Catholic Church; counselor at Camp SOAR, working with special needs children; Religious Education Program at St. James one-on-one mentor to special-needs children; as Hersey's choir president, coordinates Spring Showcase and homecoming festivities; dance captain of show choir, Orchesis Dance Company, student council and Service Over Self Club

Kailey Mongoven

Willows Academy

Hometown: Des Plaines

Class: Senior

Parents: Daniel and Shawn Mongoven

Sponsor: Cammy Czarnik, assistant head of school

Community service: Student council, freshman and junior years; participated in the Concord Study Center Service Projects during summer break helping at women's centers, nursing homes, food pantries and more; plays basketball, soccer and runs cross county and serves as captain of the teams; Our Lady of the Wayside Vacation Bible School leader; counselor at Camp Tuck; Service Club, Board Games Club, Ecology Club, Pro-Life Club, Spanish Club and Ukulele Club

Sage Morton

Schaumburg High School

Hometown: Schaumburg

Class: Senior

Parents: Randall and Laura Morton

Sponsor: Joyce Mariano, Student Services department

Community service: Group leader with GEMS (Girls Engineering Math and Science); St. Walter Children's Choir assistant; demonstrates dance moves for children at Dorothy's Dancing Unlimited; Cultural Arts volunteer with the Schaumburg Park District, working backstage organizing closets and costumes and painting sets for a recent musical; Student Ambassador; Student Athletic Leadership Team, Music Ministry Masters, National Honor Society and World Language Honor Society

Karaminder Nijjar

James B. Conant High School

Hometown: Schaumburg

Class: Senior

Parents: Mandeep Nijjar

Sponsor: J.C. Brown, counselor

Community service: Works in the athletic training office during eighth period and after school preparing athletes for practice or games and assisting with injuries; works in the Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital Daisy Basket Gift Shop assisting customers and directing visitors; National Honor Society; as part of Conant High School PRIDE, conducted daily lessons with freshmen to help with their transition and success in high school

Maema Njongmeta

Stevenson High School

Hometown: Buffalo Grove

Class: Senior

Parents: Leo Njongmeta and Lynda Njongmeta

Sponsor: Zara Dittman, Freshman Mentor Program Coordinator

Community service: Freshman Mentor Program; Fostering Intercultural Respect and Empowerment (FIRE) Education and Advocacy; Boy Scouts of America, including Eagle project constructing four benches and two tables for Reed Turner forest preserve in Long Grove

Kevin Rendon

Wheeling High School

Hometown: Wheeling

Class: Senior

Parents: Juanita Nava

Sponsor: Diane Rawlinson, dance teacher

Community service: Worked as a production assistant for Dance For Life; volunteer teacher for Orchises Children's Workshop, teaching dance and helping to produce the show; peer mentor

Maria Sanchez-Perez

Elk Grove High School

Hometown: Des Plaines

Class: Senior

Parents: Martha Rocio Sanchez and Vicente Sanchez

Sponsor: Ricardo Castro, ELL and Spanish teacher

Community service: Volunteers with the Estudiantes Unidos mentoring program, which mentors junior high school students and helps serve other organization including Feed My Starving Children and a camp for underserved children. The mentoring program is also involved in school activities including Cinco de Mayo and the community Halloween party for children.

Nicole Schwan

Barrington High School

Hometown: Lake Barrington

Class: Senior

Parents: Michael and Vivian Schwan

Sponsor: Elizabeth Robbins, teacher

Community service: Helped organize and run a local Relay For Life American Cancer Society fundraiser; worked with special-needs peers as a student volunteer; active in Broncos Committed, a lifestyle that asks Barrington High School students to commit to a 100 percent drug- and alcohol-free lifestyle; fifth-grade Broncos Committed mentor in junior-senior year; Snowflake mentor for three years

Sean Seidl

Carmel Catholic High School

Lake County Leadership Team member

Hometown: Buffalo Grove

Class: Senior

Parents: Sandi and Chris Seidl

Sponsor: Michael Fitzgibbons, Campus Minister

Community service: Leading schoolwide charity events as president of the Social Justice Club; rector for Kairos Retreat; Leadership Intern at Camp Invention STEM camp for grade school students; group leader with St. Mary School Buffalo Grove Confirmation Program; serving and training others as an altar server at St. Mary Parish

Isha Shah

East Leyden High School

Hometown: Schiller Park

Class: Senior

Parents: Mayank and Sonal Shah

Sponsor: Alicia Funes, counselor

Community service: Worked as a refugee advocate, translating for and tutoring a Burmese refugee enrolled at East Leyden; assisted students with writing essays and with math as a peer tutor; served as an ACCESS mentor, planing and implementing team-building and educational activities for freshmen; library student volunteer; Pulse Club, Ecology Club, Anime Club and ExcELLence Club

Manushi Shah

Hoffman Estates High School

Hometown: Schaumburg

Class: Senior

Parents: Naimesh Shah and Dharna Shah

Sponsor: Thomas Magan, business teacher

Community service: As a volunteer at St. Alexius Medical Center, has collected more than 250 service hours; captain of varsity tennis team; board member of Interact, a Rotary-sponsored community service club and attended the Rotary Youth Leadership Conference; president of Business Professionals of America Parliamentary Team; executive producer of school musical; Math Team, Cultural Awareness Club, National Honor Society

Ashna S. Thomas

Maine West High School

Hometown: Des Plaines

Class: Senior

Parents: Siny and Pushpa Thomas

Sponsor: Maria Ward, interim principal

Community service: Volunteers at the Des Plaines Public Library as a student tutor and helps at other library activities including Cards for Hospitalized Kids and as a member of the Teen Advisory board; Catechism teacher, working with second-graders at St. Mary's Knanaya Church; works at the Kid's Pantry sorting donations and folding clothing; National Honor Society secretary; Student Activities Leadership Team, Indian Student Association and Key Club; Warrior Pride leader, COACH tutor and yearbook co-editor

Evan Waller

Palatine High School

Hometown: Palatine

Class: Senior

Parents: Jerome and Meaghan Waller

Sponsor: Richard Splitt, counselor

Community service: Student council executive board member; Pep Assembly master of ceremonies; member of the Student Imput Team, which will help select a new principal for the school; community volunteer with Palatine Assisting Through Hope at the Community Donation Closet; Principal's Advisory board, Business Professionals of America, Future Business Leaders of America, Spirit Patrol and Investing Club

Julia Ward

Elk Grove High School

Hometown: Des Plaines

Class: Senior

Parents: Agata Ward and Christopher Ward

Sponsor: Scott C. Deutsch, counselor

Community service: Summer intern at Kenneth Young Center in Elk Grove Village, designing posters for drug and alcohol prevention messaging for Elk Grove High School and translating sixth- and seventh-grade Too Good for Drugs curriculum from English to Polish; participated in a 20-hour program of advanced studies designed for hands-on, innovative experiences in medicine through an internship with Doctor Rubin's Mini Medical School; attended a six-day leadership camp at Boston College; attended Cebrin Goodman Teen Institute, a five-day statewide youth leadership conference on leadership, healthy choices and community action planning; Best Buddies chapter president