Posted on Sun, Jun 10, 2012 : 2 p.m.
Skyline High School Top Scholars
By AnnArbor.com Staff
Skyline High School holds its 2012 graduation ceremonies Monday, June 11, 6 p.m., in the EMU Convocation Center. The class includes 376 graduates.
Evan Anderson
Parents: Gerry and Lizann Anderson
Activities and Awards: Evan is a member of the AAACF Youth Council and was a three year basketball player and Varsity captain.
Plans After Graduation: Evan will attend the University of Notre Dame next year, unsure of major or preference.
Lior Appel-Kraut
Activities and Awards: Lior was a member of Skyline Theatre all four years of high school, both as a stage manager and in a variety of acting roles. Through theater, she was a member of the International Thespian Society (ITS), and graduated as an ITS presidential scholar. She was a member of the Skyline Track and Field team, and a co-captain. Lior was also a member of the National Honor Society, and received a Letter of Commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. She has worked as a teacher's aid at Beth Israel Religious School, and volunteered with the youth group Habonim Dror and Alpha House. She studied ballet and jazz dance, as well as Hebrew and Spanish.
Plans After Graduation: Lior will attend a gap year program in Israel through Habonim Dror, and then attend Tufts University in fall of 2013.
Meredith Bell
Parents: Tim and Lisa Bell
Activities and Awards: Meredith has been a four-year member of the Skyline women's varsity swimming and water polo teams. She was a three-time captain for swimming and two-time captain for water polo, and earned academic All-American honors in both sports. She was also a member of the National Honor Society and played trumpet in Skyline's symphony band.
Plans After Graduation: Meredith will attend the University of Michigan in the fall.
Grace Chen
Activities and Awards: Grace was a National Merit Finalist and a University of Michigan Regents Scholar. She has played piano for 12 years and particularly enjoys accompanying instrumentalists and vocalists. She has also participated in six ballet productions with Ypsilanti Area Dancers. Grace is active in her church youth group and enjoys volunteering in Detroit for tutoring during the school year and Vacation Bible School in the summer. She discovered a love for medicine and health care this past summer while visiting Tenwek Hospital in Kenya.
Plans After Graduation: Grace will be attending the University of Michigan. She is in the Honor's Program in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts and intends to pursue a career in medicine.
Blake Ebright
Activities and Awards: Blake was the Vice President of the Skyline chapter of the National Honor Society and attended numerous volunteer activities with them. He was the Vice President and State Champion in DECA for two years in a row. Blake planned and executed Skyline's homecoming dance for the past three years along with the Spirit Committee of the Student Action Senate. He was a three-year member, and later captain, of Skyline's Rowing Team. In addition to being on the rowing team, he was a member of the Men's Varsity Tennis Team in his freshman and sophomore years.
Plans After Graduation: Blake will be attending the University of Michigan Honors Program, majoring in biology while fulfilling pre-med requirements.
Seth Michael Goldstein
Activities and Awards: Seth was the starting kicker and co-captain for the Skyline Varsity Football team. He was a member of the National Honor Society and selected to the Southeastern Conference All-Academic Team. Within the Ann Arbor community, Seth has volunteered as a Rec and Ed Soccer Coach, Science Olympiad Coach and has been the treasurer for Temple Beth Emeth's youth group for the past three years. He also founded Skyline's Jewish Student Union and is a member of the Design Technology and Environmental Planning Magnet.
Plans After Graduation: Seth plans to study electrical engineering at the University of Michigan.
Heather Marie Jue-Wong
Activities and Awards: Heather was a National Merit Finalist and National Merit AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals Scholarship recipient. She was a National Honor Society member and served as a Community Service officer. Heather is passionate about global health and her Skyline Health and Medicine capstone project focused on nutrition and education in Meru, Kenya. Through the First United Methodist Church, she has been involved with service projects in Costa Rica and North Dakota. At the 2011 Southeast Michigan Science Fair, her birth order, gender, and personality study garnered awards from the Office of Naval Research and the American Statistical Association. Heather is an International Thespian Society member and has been an actor and dancer in Skyline Theatre, Pioneer Theatre Guild, and Ann Arbor Civic Theatre productions. She has earned varsity letters for theatre and community service.
Plans After Graduation: Heather plans to study global health at Carnegie Mellon University. She would like to return to Meru, Kenya and volunteer to teach health and nutrition education to primary and secondary school students.
Parents: David B. Kershaw, Martha O. Kershaw
Activities and Awards: In addition to academic endeavors during high school, Carl earned a Black Belt in Ninjutsu at Quest Martial Arts; crewed the reproduction schooner Appledore V in the great lakes for the NPO "Baysail"; competed in First Robotics as part of Ann Arbor's Team 830, who went to Nationals in St. Louis this year; tutored fellow students in math and science; and enjoyed Rock Climbing with Ann Arbor's Team Planet Rock.
Plans After Graduation: Carl will be attending the University of Michigan School of Engineering this fall.
Elizabeth "Betsy" Mansfield
Activities and Awards: Betsy was a member of the National Honor Society, an AP Scholar with Distinction, an International Thespian Society (ITS) Presidential Scholar, an Honor Thespian, a National Merit Semifinalist, and a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Academic Team. During her four years at Skyline she earned 16 Varsity letters: four letters as the four-year captain of the women's bowling team; one letter in Athletic Medicine; two as the manager of the women's field hockey team; four letters in theatre; three in band; and two letters in community service. In addition, Betsy was a Link Crew leader for two years. Outside of school, she has volunteered as a zooteen at Binder Park Zoo, and participated in an Earthwatch expedition in the Bahamas.
Plans After Graduation: Betsy plans on attending Duke University to study marine biology and environmental policy.
Priyanka Menon
Activities and Awards: Priyanka (Priya) is an AP National Scholar and Joyce Ivy scholarship recipient. She was one of Michigan's delegates to the 2011 United States Senate Youth Program as well as the 2011 Congressional Academy. She founded Skyline's chapter of the Junior State of America and served as president of the chapter as well as Michigan Senator for the Midwest Junior State of America. Priya was captain of Skyline's forensics team and was the 2011 state champion in Extemporaneous Speaking. She was also a member of the Youth Senate and the Women in Leadership project at the Youth Empowerment Project, the Skyline High School Symphony Orchestra, and Ann Arbor Academic Games. Priya has served as Community Service Chair for Skyline's National Honor Society chapter and on the Board of Directors for Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra.
Plans After Graduation:Priya plans to attend Harvard College in the fall, concentrating on mathematics and philosophy.
Ana Sofia Moreno-Mesa
Activities and Awards: Ana Sofia was a member of the National Honor Society as well as Peers Making Peace, a peer-mediation program within Skyline. She was an active member of Skyline Crew for over two years, and was one of her school's representatives for the SEC All-Academic Banquet. Ana Sofia was named Skyline Graphic Design Artist of the Year for the 2011-2012 school year. She served as a teacher's assistant in the program En Nuestra Lengua, a Spanish school for heritage speakers, and was a Pastoral Care Assistant at her Unitarian Universalist church, where she provided companionship for the mourning.
Plans After Graduation: Ana Sofia will be attending Smith College, majoring in biology.
Shruthi Narayanan
Activities and Awards: Shruthi is a National Merit Scholar and an AP Scholar with Distinction. She is a member of the National Honor Society. She has played violin in her school's Symphony Orchestra for four years. Shruthi's interests include math and science, and she tutors in these subjects. She enjoys participating in competitions such as the Michigan Math Prize Competition and Science Olympiad, and has placed in many of these. She has been a classical dancer for ten years and a tennis player for three. In her spare time, she likes to read and draw.
Plans After Graduation: Shruthi plans to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the coming fall. She is undecided regarding her major.
Parents: Dennis Nordling and Kathy Roeser-Nordling
Activities and Awards: Lauren was a member of the National Honor Society. She has been awarded a University of Michigan Regents Merit Scholarship. Lauren was a Skyline High School varsity softball letterman, and treasurer of the Skyline High School UNICEF Club. She was a board member for the Ann Arbor YMCA Youth Advisory Council and is a long-standing participant in the Ann Arbor YMCA Youth Volunteer Corp.
Plans After Graduation: Lauren will be attending the University of Michigan College of Engineering, majoring in civil engineering.
Randa Sakallah
Activities and Awards: Randa was a member of the varsity cross-country and track teams during all four years of high school, and was voted captain during her last two. She is an AP Scholar with Honor and a National Merit Commended Student in addition to being selected for the 2011-2012 SEC All-Academic Team. Randa was elected president of Skyline’s National Honor Society chapter and served in her junior and senior years. She co-owned and operated her business, Ann Arbor Dipped, from the summer before her junior year until mid-senior year. During the last half of her senior year, Randa took on a job at the University of Michigan School of Education. In her spare time, she volunteers for several local organizations.
Plans After Graduation: Randa will study engineering at the University of Michigan.
Megan Smith
Activities and Awards: Megan was a member of the National, and a member of the Link Crew. She participated in cross country her freshman year and also played basketball and tennis. Megan played basketball for three years (two years varsity) and was on the varsity tennis team all four years. In addition, she was voted varsity team captain for tennis her junior and senior year. Megan received an endorsement for taking classes and doing well in graphics and photography. Lastly, she consistently volunteers on projects through the YMCA and Leslie Science Center, and works through the Rec & Ed teaching children gymnastics.
Plans After Graduation: Megan will be attending Indiana University, intending to double major in International Business and Marketing within the Kelley School of Business.
Hannah Steinberg
Activities and Awards: Hannah was a National Merit Commended Student and was secretary of Skyline's National Honor Society her junior and senior years. She participated in theatre at Skyline and performed in the Michigan Interscholastic Forensic Association theatre competition four times, earning five certificates of excellence and one superior for her acting. Hannah has been a member of the International Thespian Society for three years and made their President's Scholars List. She was also on the Skyline softball team for four years, and was co-captain of the varsity team for three years. Hannah has received an Honorable Mention recognition in the MHSAA Southeastern Conference, was named to the All-District team for second base, received a Sportsmanship Award from the Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association, and was awarded an Academic All-State Award for softball.
Plans After Graduation: Hannah will attend Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut.
Kayla Steinberg
Activities and Awards: Kayla was a member of the National Honor Society and received a National Merit Letter of Commendation. She was on Skyline's first women's basketball and soccer teams and continued with basketball for two years and soccer for three years. Kayla was co-captain of the JV soccer team her sophomore year and earned a varsity letter for her sophomore and junior years. In addition, Kayla was involved in many volunteer activities throughout high school, including apprenticing at the Clements Library, assisting in an anthropology lab at the University of Michigan, and being treasurer of Young Women for change.
Plans After Graduation: Kayla will attend Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Emily Trudeau
Parents: Brian and Mary Trudeau
Activities and Awards: Emily is a National Merit Finalist and scholarship winner, a National Spanish Exam gold award recipient, and an AP Scholar. She was a member National Honor Society, Student Volunteer Club, and Student Action Senate. Emily works as a nanny for three children. She plays piano and guitar, and volunteers frequently.
Plans After Graduation: Emily plans to attend the LS&A Honors Program at the University of Michigan to study biology.