Our daughter is such a remarkable young woman, she's very mature for her age. At seventeen, she has accomplished a lot of things.
Knows How to Read and Write Before Kindergarten
We taught both of our two children at home during their pre-school years. Hubby and I agreed that I stayed home and take care of our kids. It's not ideal financially but it's a great decision that hubby and I made. We knew that our daughter is one smart cookie even when she was way little. She just have that eagerness in learning new things.
She has that patience and focus for learning compared to our happy-go-lucky son lol. I mean, our son is equally smart as hers but he doesn't have the focus that she has. She knew how to read and write before she started kindergarten which I am so glad that my husband and I were their first hands-on teachers. Her friends even joke about her being smart because she was homeschooled during pre-school.
Winner of an International Smile Contest
She was the winner of an international smile contest for the month of October 2009. This contest was sponsored by Division of Pediatric Dentistry, Department of Oral Health Sciences, University of British Columbia, Canada. We were in South Korea when this was held.
Gifted Program from 2nd Grade to 8th Grade
Doodle for Google State Winner
She's into arts when she was young so her art teacher (thank you Mrs. Wright!) recommended her to enter the Doodle for Google contest. She was the winner for our state, West Virginia. Some of the representative from Google came to Weirton to celebrate her win and brief her what to do for the national round which was held in California. She didn't win the national round but it was a great experience for her and for us as well. We got to explore the Google headquarters.
First Prize on the Kinsley S. Ard Memorial Talent Show held at Milton J. Weinberg Theater, on March 28, 2014 against 14 other participants. She played Hunter on the piano.
Kinsley S. Ard Memorial Talent Show Winner
She won the anti-bullying contest art contest in 2016. For her entry, she combined her passion for arts and baking into one idea and it turned out well.
She was the grand prize winner of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development art contest with the topic I mentioned above.
History Bowl Finalist
Healthy Soils Full of Life Art Contest Winner
She won the art contest dubbed as Healthy Soils: Full of Life sponsored by the Northern Panhandle Conservation District on May 5, 2017. She received a cash award sent as check in the mail. We were not able to go to the awarding ceremony due to schedule conflict with her sports but it was really a good opportunity where her art talent shined.
Her team was the runner up in the History Bowl in the regional round in Wheeling and was one of the finalists on the championship round in Charleston, WV.
Class President, Freshman to Senior Year
She served as the class president from freshman year till senior year. (2019-2023). This is a great leadership experience for her. We let her lead without us interfering too much, she gets to decide what fundraising they do and we just support her whatever she needs. I think it is important that class officers make decision and not the parents. If parents would decide for them then there would be no learning avenue for these kids. I am glad that our daughter gets to do it with very little influence from us. I think she did a great job.
Aquinas Medal Awardee for 2019
She was named and awarded 2019 Aquinas medal Recipient for St Joseph the Worker. We attended the 25th Annual Bishops Dinner for Catholic Schools on Sunday, April 7, in Morgantown, West Virginia where the awarding ceremony was held. This is the highest honor a student can receive from the diocese. The award recognizes students for their outstanding qualities of faithful discipleship, academic excellence, leadership and service to school, parish and community, reflecting the ideals of Catholic education epitomized by St Thomas Aquinas the patron saint of students.
She served as the class president from freshman year till senior year. (2019-2023). This is a great leadership experience for her. We let her lead without us interfering too much, she gets to decide what fundraising they do and we just support her whatever she needs. I think it is important that class officers make decision and not the parents. If parents would decide for them then there would be no learning avenue for these kids. I am glad that our daughter gets to do it with very little influence from us. I think she did a great job.
She is a member of the National Honor Society. She excels in academics that's because she put her 100% effort into it.
She was one of the 3 named as National Merit Semifinalist in Northern Panhandle schools.
The National Merit Scholarship Program is an annual academic competition in which high school students compete for college scholarships and recognition. The program is administered by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), a privately-funded non-profit organization. Winning a National Merit Scholarship is a fairly difficult undertaking.
SAT and ACT Scores
Our daughter doesn't have additional preparation in taking the ACT and SAT, she rely on the information she have learned from school. Some of the kids in her class has tutors prior for taking these tests so they have advantage. Our daughter does good though without tutors. We bought her a couple of books but she doesn't really have time to read them. We're pleasantly surprise though that her scores are very high. Below is her ACT the very first time she took it, then the second time she scored 32, then she took the last one last Saturday (Oct. 22).
Her SAT scored improved as well, I forgot what she got the first time but below was the second time she took it. She took the last one this month and brought her score up to 1540.
Krivak Tuition Scholarship Winner
She won the Joe Krivak Tuition Scholarship for two years (2021-2022) with $500 prize credited towards her tuition. Every year, the school encourage students to write an essay to be selected as the scholarship recipient. Sending our kids to catholic private school is expensive but it's worth it. These scholarships helps a little.
First Job as a Fastfood Crew
As soon as she turned 16, she started working at Taco Bell. My husband was against the idea of her working but I supported her decision on working. I think it is a great avenue for her to deal with people which is a hard thing for her being an introvert. It also give her the freedom to have her own finances. She pays for her gas and occasional eating out and she's so happy that she have her own money in the bank.
This wasn't one of her fondest experience but I think it pushed her out of her comfort zone for being shy. Although she said she didn't really enjoy the experience but it's something that she realized that in life, not everything is a bed of roses, that there are a lot of curbs and bumps along the way. I still think that Rhododendron Girls State was a good learning experience for her. She's an introvert so meeting new people and interacting with them can be very uncomfortable at first but I'm glad she went, she gained few friends that she still keep in contact with.
Nomination to the Academies
On October 10th, she received the nomination for both Naval and Air Force Academies from Rep. McKinley. She interviewed for the Senator Manchin virtually. She forfeited her interview with Sen. Capito because it was on the Homecoming Court Day. This process has been difficult. We were not sure if she was still interested in going to the naval academy because she didn't put much effort in putting together the stuff that she needs. We were on a time crunch but eventually sent her applications on time. We're glad and relieved that she got the nomination. Got her physical test and medical exams done and submitted her application. She attended the Academy Training Day that Sen. Manchin hosted at WVU on August 27th. Now, the waiting game begins and that's the hard part.
OVAC AllStar Volleyball Player
She was selected to play for the OVAC (Ohio Valley Athletic Conference) All Stars representing her school for volleyball. She played with different other all-star athletes from other schools in West Virginia at Morristown Ohio. It was an exciting match and so happy that the mountaineers won. WV team hasn't won the match for few years so it was so exciting that my daughter was part of the winning team. The game took place last November 21st of 2022.
She did a really good job representing her team and the school.
US Presidential Scholars Program Candidate for 2023
In September 2022, NMSP (National Merit Scholarship Corporation) selected about 16,000 students. The school was informed that our daughter advances as a finalist and sent this certificate of merit.
St. Aquinas Medal Awardee
It's official, she will have the St. Aquinas Medal.
US Naval Academy Appointment
It is now official that she will be attending the US Naval Academy. She was sick last week when Senator Manchin's office called to inform her about the appointment. She didn't get to share the big news with us until this weekend when she was feeling a little better. She received the certificate of appointment this week and accepted it.
I'd like to thank St. Joseph School and Madonna High School for nurturing and instilling great catholic values in both of our kids.
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