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Lake Park High School Class of 2021

Graduates in the Class of 2021: 635

Graduation Speakers: Abhi Patel, graduation ceremony; David Surzykiewicz, scholarship and awards.

Class Officers: President Elise Fulmer; Vice-President Fiza Sadruddin; Secretary Myra Zaki; Treasurer Laura Blackburn and Krisha Patel; Historians, Christine Andreeva and Tina Willnow

Extracurricular achievements:

• Final IHSEA SSBU State Tournament - Seth Birmingham

• All-Conference Scholastic Bowl in the DuKane Conference - David Surzykiewicz

• Governor of Youth and Government - David Surzykiewicz

• DECA Internationals Qualifiers - David Surzykiewicz, Abhi Patel, Nicole Cozzi

• 2nd Place State Robotics Tournament & Qualified for VEX Worlds Competition - Brandon Lis, Daniel Stark

• Choral ILMEA participant - Danny Steetz Tenor (Traditional Choir), Tenor (Vocal Jazz Ensemble)

• Drum Majors: Tommy Krokos, Chelsea Pangan

• President of the Illinois DECA State Action Team - Abhi Patel

• DuKane Conference Art Show (Honorable Mention in Painting) - Jan-Louis Ornillo

• All Sectional Cast honors for IHSA Drama Sectionals: Group Interpretation performance - Dan Gawedski, Jake Samojla, Julia Ryan. Contest Play performance - Owen Bigler, Abby Manning, Colin Payan

• DuKane Conference Math Champions - Slaven Bekic, Owen Bigler, Daniel Gawedzki, Selena Ho, Thomas Krokos, Christina Maletsky, Gabrielle Mintrop, Abigail Mizzi, Petar Modrakovic, Abhi Patel, Giuseppe Randazzo, Jeffrey Saele, Jack Sampson, Kailey Schwindt, Daniel Steuer, Liam van den Bogert, Elizabeth Witek

Athletic achievements:

• Competitive Dance - IHSA Team State Qualifier (8 consecutive years)

• Girls Gymnastics - DuKane Conference Champions (2 consecutive years)

• Badminton - IHSA Sectional Champions

• Boys Gymnastics - Independent Conference Champions

• Individual Class of 2020 All DuKane Conference or Conference Champions/IHSA State Series Champions or Qualifiers:

Olivia Essar (Girls Golf); Analisa Cruz (Girls Tennis); Matt Lesniak (Boys Golf); Emma Thorne (Girls Basketball); Gabby Montes (Competitive Dance); Capri DeRosa (Competitive Dance); Grace DiVito (Competitive Dance); Emily Grubb (Competitive Dance); Anthony Bartlett (Boys Soccer); Anthony Magner (Boys Soccer); Aimee Dukin (Badminton); Emily Kim (Badminton); Katherine Rainey (Badminton); Lizette Zarate (Badminton); Zahra Bhojani (Badminton); Christina Andreeva (Badminton); Racquel Suhr (Girls Gymnastics); Olivia Perez (Girls Gymnastics)

• NCAA Division I or II and NAIA College Signees: Josh Schellinger, volleyball, University of California San Diego; Chris Worcester, baseball, Eastern Illinois University; Jackson Kent, baseball, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee; Lauren Boafo, girls soccer, Western Michigan University; Taylor Connolly, volleyball, University of St. Francis; Elijah Wrobel, volleyball,) Judson University.

Theater productions:

• "Aesop's Fables"

• "Twisted Tales of Poe"

• "Clue"

• "A Christmas Carol"

• "The Hobbit" (IHSA Group Interpretation)

• "Proof" (IHSA Contest Play)

• "The Little Mermaid" (Musical)

Senior Class gift: Water bottle filling stations in the hallways

What traditional events were adapted for the pandemic and how?

We attempted to maintain all events that would happen in a traditional year, but in an adapted fashion. As noted above, we still had every single one of our theater productions, however, they were all virtual. We were lucky to be able to have all sporting teams practice and compete, just to limited and socially distanced crowds. Luckily as we got closer to the end of the year and as things opened up we were able to do and prepare for awards ceremonies for our seniors to be in-person, but once again in a socially distanced fashion and thus a limited audience.

What were the most significant challenges faced by the Class of 2021 and how did they overcome them?

Our senior class has been unbelievably flexible and understanding this school year. They have advocated to have as much of a traditional school year as possible, and we have tried to meet that demand in the best possible way that we can. The biggest challenge that Lake Park met was attempting to adequately plan and prepare for the end-of-year senior events. This class has been through so much and we have wanted to be able to give them what they truly deserve. While events like Prom and Senior Picnic will look different, the biggest achievement of all is that we are still able to host them. The senior class will be able to spend their last week together as an entire group, which is something that they were unable to do for a majority of the school year. This graduating class is truly a dynamic one. They have made themselves seen and heard, even if it was behind a computer screen. This class will do big things just due to their abilities to be able to adapt on the fly and still persevere. This school year will certainly leave a mark on their lives.

Principal's reflections on the Class of 2021:

Every student looks forward to their senior year. You have spent four years with this group of students, whether it was in class, in extracurricular activities or through your athletic participation. The weight of pressure that I felt throughout the year to be able to give these students as much of a big send off as possible is hard to put into words. These students have worked so incredibly hard to get to this point and you just want to have the ability to celebrate them as much as possible and to be able to do that as a group. I am thankful that as we have transitioned into the Spring that things have opened up and that we have been able to plan in fashion that will allow us to do just that with our seniors. They are an incredible and versatile group and I just want them to be able to look back at their four years here and to say that even in spite of what we went through, we still got to be acknowledged and celebrated.

- Principal Amanda Brode-Rico

  Lake Park High School's commencement took place at the NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates. Mark Welsh/mwelsh@dailyherald.com
  Lake Park High School student Avneet Singh, 18, of Bloomingdale waves to her family in the audience during her commencement ceremony at the Now Arena in Hoffman Estates. Mark Welsh/mwelsh@dailyherald.com
  Lake Park High School East Campus in Roselle. Paul Valade/pvalade@dailyherald.com
  Lake Park senior pitcher Reagan Goffron throws to a St. Charles East batter during a softball game in St. Charles. Paul Valade/pvalade@dailyherald.com
  Lake Park's Madelyn Fricano is greeted at home after hitting a home run against St. Charles East. Paul Valade/pvalade@dailyherald.com
  Lake Park senior quarterback Brian Patton, left, hands off the ball to Desmond Horton for a short gain during a matchup against Glenbard North. Mark Welsh/mwelsh@dailyherald.com
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