Congratulations to these California Super Teens!
Emily Navala says attending the Accel Middle College Program has had the biggest impact on her life. She takes AVID, English and U.S. history classes in the afternoon, and in the mornings takes college classes to earn college credit. She is an active badminton player, a member of the soccer team, and enjoys taking Zumba classes. She plans to pursue a business degree and join the Peace Corps after college. She wants to attend graduate school and travel the world. “I believe that if you believe in yourself and enjoy everything that you are a part of, anything is possible for anyone to accomplish,” she says. “You just have to work hard at it.”
Serina Pace of Highland High School is in the Law and Government Academy, where she performs 150 service hours a year to meet the requirement to graduate with honors. She has been featured in her local paper for her volunteer efforts and received recognition from the City of Palmdale for her efforts. She also headed some important discussions at Palmdale’s 2009 Youth Summit. Her goal is to graduate with honors, become president of the Next Generation Youth Council, attend law camp, and study law at a university.
Abby Reutzel of Laguna Blanca School has accomplished a lot already in her life. She was the first freshman in more than 35 years to be on the staff of her high school’s newspaper. She was the first freshman to ever be accepted as a summer intern at The Santa Barbara Independent. She also started the Cure Finders branch in Santa Barbara, which helps raise money to find a cure for cystic fibrosis. She plans to attend college and become a recognized rock critic. Next summer, she plans to travel with a band, tour the U.S. and Europe, then produce an autobiographical account of the experience with journal entries, interviews, videos and photos.
Pooja Shah of Irvington High School started her own nonprofit organization, The Panacea Initiative, to empower underprivileged children in developing countries. Recognizing the social constraints and lack of resources in her target areas, she has raised funds to provide a primary education, shelter, and treatments for indigent children. She also started the Beneath the Bay community service project, which aimed to prevent pollution of local bodies of water by pharmaceutical waste. Pooja has been a martial artist for 12 years and is a Tae Kwon Do second-degree black belt. She has been taking dance, singing and piano lessons for four years and has won first place in several recitals. She is currently valedictorian of her class and has taken 15 AP and eight honors classes. Pooja plans on becoming a businesswoman and starting a Fortune 500 company before she is 40. She also wants to be a congresswoman, senator and the first female President of the United States.
Don’t forget to comment on yesterday’s Wanna Win Wednesday post for your chance to win a prize pack from Edison State College!!
