Ann Arbor Pioneer High School held its 2011 graduation ceremonies Thursday, June 2 in the Eastern Michigan Convocation Center. The class included 654 graduates.

Rachel Bielajew

Parents: Karen Vineberg and Alex Bielajew

Activities and Awards: Rachel is a National Merit finalist and a recipient of the Laureat du Chapitre award for French students. She also received an Academic Excellence award for athletes. Throughout high school, Rachel has participated in the Michigan Mathematics Prize Competition, the Chemistry Olympiad, and a Medical Innovation Brainstorming Session. She played flute in band and marched in marching band during high school, and was involved in rowing all four years. She has spent much time volunteering, including at the University Michigan Hospital Department of Radiation Oncology and at Love Kids Orphanage in Nkoranza, Ghana.

Plans after graduation: Rachel will attend the University of Michigan and study engineering.

Carolyn Birch

Parents: Jean and Jim Birch

Activities and Awards: Carolyn has been a member of the Pioneer's Women's Golf Team and was captain during her senior season. She received the Academic All-State Award from the Michigan Interscholastic Coaches Association and was also presented with the Coaches Sportsmanship Award. Carolyn has studied piano for 13 years and has been involved with Community Volunteer Corp., Key Club and Little Dresses for Africa

Plans after graduation: Carolyn plans to attend the University of Michigan, College of Engineering.

Emily Burns

Parents: Jennifer Linderman and Mark Burns

Activities and Awards: Emily received a Regents Scholarship from the University of Michigan and a Kiwanis Club Scholarship. She was selected for the 2010-2011 SEC All-Academic team in addition to being chosen as Pioneer High School's Brightest & Best student for Channel 7's WXYZ-TV. Emily participated in Pioneer swimming for three years and water polo for four years and works as a lifeguard and a swim instructor for children.

Plans after graduation: Emily will attend the University of Michigan's College of Engineering.

Andrew Chou

Parents: Dave Chou and Fang Tan

Activities and Awards: Andrew is a member of the National Honor Society and a National Merit Finalist. Andrew plays piano and was a finalist in the 2008 New York Piano Competition, a semi-finalist in the 2010 Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition and a third place winner of the 2009 Rosalie Edwards Competition. This year, he also received an honorable mention award from the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts “Young Arts” program. In 2008, Andrew attended the International Institute for Young Musicians in Kansas City. He won the merit scholarship award to attend the prestigious Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina in 2009 and in 2010 took part in the Indiana University Piano Academy. He also plays cello in the Pioneer High School Symphony Orchestra.

Plans after graduation: Andrew plans to attend the University of Michigan and double major in biomedical engineering and piano performance.

Robert Howes Eisentrout

Parents: Scott Eisentrout and Margy Howes

Activities and Awards: Robby served as president of the A Cappella choir and Music Director of the extracurricular group, the Pioneers. He was a member of the student executive board of Pioneer Theatre Guild, where he also participated in 16 shows. As a member of the National Honor Society, Robby donated time to his church and his community. His junior year summer, Robby participated in a mission trip to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. His senior year summer, he attended the Seminar Music Camp at Western Michigan University. At the Interlochen Center for the Arts, Robby received the Best in Bass Section Award.

Plans after graduation: Robby will attend Northwestern University, where he is enrolled in the School of Music to study vocal performance and the School of Journalism to study broadcasting.

Julia Feldman

Parents: Art and Lori Feldman

Activities and Awards: Julia was a member of Pioneer's Orientation Guide program. This past year, she also participated in the Trailblazers program. While at Pioneer, she participated in the Symphony Orchestra and Key Club. Julia volunteers at Arbor Hospice and, in her spare time, tutors other students.

Plans after graduation: Julia plans to attend the LSA Honors Program at the University of Michigan. She will major in psychology.

Dan Hiemstra

Parents: Bruce and Loris Hiemstra

Activities and Awards: Dan has been involved in sports at both Pioneer High School and the International School of Dusseldorf, Germany. Freshman year in Germany, he played as a starter on the U16 basketball team, which placed first in both the German Club League and the NECIS (Northern European Council of International Schools) League. At Pioneer he played lacrosse and varsity tennis. He is involved in his church as a youth group drummer and has participated in service projects in Detroit. He plays drums in a local band called String Theory, and the band hopes to record a demo album this summer. His other hobbies include playing piano, composing music, cinematography, basketball and soccer.

Plans after graduation: Dan will study engineering at the University of Michigan.

Matthew Hing

Parents: David and Cathy Hing

Activities and Awards: Matthew was a National Merit Scholar and a member of the National Honor Society. He volunteered as a tutor at Forsythe Middle School. He was a captain of the Pioneer Varsity Men's Tennis team for two years and also a state champion. In addition to being a student council representative, Matthew also served as the president of Pioneer's Key Club. He was a recipient of the Michigan High School Athletic Association's Scholar-Athlete Award.

Plans after graduation: Matthew will attend the Honors Program at the University of Notre Dame, where he plans to pursue either premed or business.

Leila Hofer

Parents: Valerie Kivelson and Timothy Hofer

Activities and Awards: Leila plays pickup ultimate frisbee in the park with her friends and has won many paper plate awards throughout her high school career.

Plans after graduation: Leila will attend Harvard in the fall.

Lucy Holland

Parents: Marc and Kathy Holland

Activities and Awards: Lucy received the Girl Scout Silver Award. She served multiple times as head of paint crew in Pioneer Theatre Guild and has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity. Lucy is a member of National Honor Society and Pioneer High School's Gay Straight Alliance. She participated in the Women In Science and Engineering Summer Camp at the University of Michigan and traveled to Europe with the People to People program. Lucy is a member of the tutoring program Trailblazers and serves as a peer educator in her community. She has received the Robert Emmett Motley Scholarship and the University of Michigan Regents Merit Scholarship.

Plans after graduation: Lucy will attend the University of Michigan and major in political science.

Daniel Jiang

Parents: Jiang and Min Jiang

Activities and Awards: Daniel received a National Merit Scholarship and was named to the Southeastern Conference All-Academic Team. He was co-captain of the Pioneer High School Science Olympiad Team and president of the International Improvement Society. Daniel was also a member of the Pioneer Symphony Orchestra, National Honor Society and AnnHua Chinese School Volunteer Board. Daniel played for the Pioneer varsity tennis team and won a DI state title at fourth doubles, helping his team achieve a second place finish at states.

Plans after graduation: Daniel will attend Northwestern University and study medicine.

Andrea Kriz

Parents: Yulin Kriz and Igor Kriz

Activities and Awards: Andrea is a National Merit Scholarship Finalist and an AP Scholar with distinction. She was selected as a Southeastern Conference All-Academic Scholar and was in the top 100 of the Michigan Mathematics Prize Competition. Andrea is also a silver medalist of United States Mathematical Talent Search and a National Finalist of United States National Chemistry Olympiad. In 2010, Andrea was the co-captain of the Michigan All-Star team participating in the American Regional Math League Competition. Andrea plays piano and violin.

Plans after graduation: Andrea plans to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology and major in biology.

Lissa Kryska

Parents: Lynn and Bill Kryska

Activities and Awards: Lissa is a National Merit Finalist, and an SEC All-Academic Scholar. She was a member of Dance Alliance Repertory Co. and has competed and performed around the country. Lissa was a member of Pioneer Theater Guild, performing in several shows, and was a finalist in Future Stars 2011. She was also an Orientation Guide and a member of the Community Volunteer Club.

Plans after graduation: Lissa will be dual-enrolled at the University of Michigan in the School of Dance and LS&A Honors Program.

Damian McGlothlin

Parents: Chris and Anastasia McGlothlin

Activities and Awards: Damian is the founder of the nonprofit 501c3 charity organization YouChooseOne. This online organization has profiles of various families in need so that donors can choose which person they want to donate to as opposed to donating blindly to an organization. He has raised around $10,000 for families in Washtenaw County and hopes that this unique idea could expand into the next nationwide Netflix for charity. He also plays soccer where he has been a two-year captain at Pioneer and coaches a youth rec and ed soccer team in the local community. He also interns at the U-M Internal Medicine Department Laboratory during the summers, where works on several research projects.

Plans after graduation: Damian will attend Stanford University, where he hopes to study medicine and play soccer.

Cara Marie Pardon

Parents: Scott and Cathy Pardon

Activities and Awards: Cara is a member of the National Honor Society. A 4.0 student, she was chosen as this year's Scholar Athlete from Pioneer High School. She is a member of the A Cappella Choir and a four-year varsity soccer player, currently serving as captain of the team. Cara volunteers in the community, including Alpha House and TOPSoccer. She traveled on a mission trip with her church to Meru, Kenya where she taught at the Bishop Lawi Imathiu Secondary School and Kithoka Primary school.

Plans after graduation: Cara will attend Williams College in Massachusetts, where she will major in biology and also play varsity soccer.

Aryeh Perlman

Parents: Kim & Lawrence Perlman

Activities and Awards: Aryeh was honored as a National Merit Scholarship Semi-Finalist and received a Silver Medal and two Magna Cum Laude Awards on the National Latin Exams in ninth, 10th and 11th grades. As a result of his excellent AP test scores, he was awarded the AP Scholar Award. Additionally, Aryeh was a member of Pioneer's Student Council in junior and senior years, as well as the co-president of the Pioneer Bicycle Rider's Society in junior year. Aryeh acted and participated in sets and sound crews in Pioneer Theatre Guild in his freshman and sophomore years. Outside of Pioneer, he has been involved in Aikido and fencing at the YMCA.

Plans after graduation: Aryeh will attend the University of Michigan, Residential College LSA Honors Program.

Linda Relson

Parents: David and Mary Relson

Activities and Awards: Linda participated in the Pioneer High School Bands for all four years of high school, playing oboe and English horn. She has also played oboe in the Pioneer Symphony Orchestra for the last two years. Linda swam for three years on the Pioneer Women's Swim Team and also dabbled in track, water polo and synchronized swimming at Pioneer. Linda participated in the Health Sciences program to explore different careers in the health field, volunteered for local organizations, and worked at Holiday's restaurant during her senior year.

Plans after graduation: Linda will attend Case Western Reserve University to study biomedical engineering.

Carly Renner

Parents: Marc and Deborah Renner

Activities and Awards: Carly is principal flute in the Pioneer Symphony Band and Orchestra. She received the John Philip Sousa award for outstanding musicianship and was a Pioneer Concerto Competition winner. She plays in the Detroit Symphony Civic Youth Orchestra and the Michigan Youth Symphony Orchestra, and was principal flute in the Interlochen World Youth Symphony Orchestra. Carly won the Southeast Michigan Flute Association high school competition and was a finalist in the National Flute Association high school competition.

Plans after graduation: Carly will attend Manhattan School of Music to study flute performance with a President's Award Scholarship.

Eli Kuznetsov Schultz

Parents: Daniel Schultz and Marina Kuznetsov

Activities and Awards: Eli was a Presidential Scholarship Semi-Finalist.

Plans after graduation: Eli plans to attend Columbia University.

Karen Toomasian

Parents: John and Denise Toomasian

Activities and Awards: Karen has maintained a 4.0 GPA all four years while attending Pioneer High School and was a member of the National Honor Society. She was named MVP of the varsity figure skating team in ninth grade, and skated with the Hockettes Synchronized Skating Program all four years of high school. As co-captain of the Hockettes Junior team in 12th grade, Karen and the Hockettes won the bronze medal at the Spring Cup in Milan, Italy in February 2011.

Plans after graduation: Karen plans to attend the University of Michigan and will be studying in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts.

Alex Willets

Parents: Scott Willets and Athena Bacalis Willets

Activities and Awards: Alex has been a member of the National Honor Society and the Spanish National Honor Society. He is an excellent Spanish speaker. Alex earned the Southeastern Conference Scholar Athlete award, received a varsity letter for soccer and was selected to the Michigan state pool for the United States Olympic Development Program. He has served on the Ann Arbor YMCA Youth Advisory Council. As a member of the YMCA Youth Volunteer Corps, he has volunteered throughout Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti including at Food Gatherers, Avalon Housing, Neighborhood Senior Services and the Ann Arbor Center for Independent Living. Alex holds two part-time jobs — as a licensed soccer referee and as a construction site laborer. He has tent camped and hiked all over the east and west United States.

Plans after graduation: Alex will attend the University of Michigan College of Engineering in the fall.

Hope Wilson

Parents: Bill and Gloria Wilson

Activities and Awards: Hope is a National Merit Finalist, a Michigan Mathematics Prize Competition semifinalist, an AP Scholar and a member of the National Honor Society. She participated in the national round of the Chemistry Olympiad competition. Hope plays trombone in Pioneer High School's Symphony Band, Symphony Orchestra and Jazz Band. She marched in the marching band and won the Best Old Musician (Female) award at Pioneer's band camp. She also tied for the Best Old Marcher (Female) award. Hope has played in the Detroit Civic Orchestra, Michigan Youth Orchestra, and numerous other ensembles, including her family brass quintet, quintets made up of her peers, a student-run orchestra, and the Interlochen All-State Orchestra and Band. At MSBOA State Solo & Ensemble, she was nominated for the Outstanding Soloist competition in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Plans after graduation: Hope will study engineering at Yale University.

Samuelina Wright

Parents: Jonathan and Kathleen Wright

Activities and Awards: Samuelina was a member of KEY Club and of the National Honor Society. She was a violinist in Pioneer’s orchestra program for ninth, 10th, and 11th grade and was secretary of Concert Orchestra her junior year. Samuelina has been Irish dancing with O’Hare School of Irish Dance for two years and plans to continue dancing into her college years. In addition to dance and music, Samuelina enjoys art. Her pieces have been in several art shows as early as elementary school, and she was a finalist in the AAA Safety Poster Contest. She also designed the Pioneer Orchestra T-shirt. She looks forward to her fifth year participating in her youth group’s mission trip to Detroit this summer.

Plans after graduation: Samuelina will attend the University of Michigan to study engineering.

Eric Yamakado

Parents: Nina and Shinya Yamakado

Activities and Awards: Eric was a member of the National Honor Society and multiple volunteering clubs. He was also a student in the Health Sciences program. Eric plays percussion and was section leader in the Pioneer Symphony Band, Orchestra and Drumline (the 2011 National GRAMMY Signature School music program). He was a Pioneer Concerto Concert winner for his marimba concerto. He was also the "2011 Andrew J. Lum & David R. Juillet Young Artist Competition Scholarship" winner and was featured in a concert at the Michigan Theater with the Ann Arbor Concert Band. Eric plays ice hockey, and while in high school, he has played for the Ann Arbor Wolves travel team and the Chelsea Chiefs travel team, and was a captain for the Ann Arbor Eagles. He played for the Ann Arbor Storm this past season as they won a district championship and made the state playoffs.

Plans after graduation: Eric will attend the University of Michigan (The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts), possibly to study a health-related subject and to audition for the Michigan Drumline and/or a campus band/orchestra.