TRIB TOTAL MEDIA WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 2018 · 13
Katrina Taliani
School, grade:
Deer Lakes
High School, 11
Parents: Craig and
Lisa Taliani
Academic
achievements:
Top 10 percent;
National Honor So-ciety;
Spanish National Honor Society.
Extracurricular activities: Deer
Lakes Ambassadors Club; student
council; softball; basketball; Hugh
O’Brian Youth Leadership Conference
School Representative; Allegheny
Intermediate Unit Apprenticeship
Program; Southwest PA Area Health
Education Center participant at Uni-versity
of Pittsburgh.
Community involvement: UPMC
Magee Women’s Hospital volunteer
program; UPMC Children’s Hospital
volunteer; Allegheny Valley Hospital
volunteer; creator of annual com-munitywide
clothing drive/clothing
giveaway event; creator of annual fall
festival for the elementary schools
in Deer Lakes; initiated a pen pal
program to connect our high school to
our elementary schools.
Plans/goals: I plan to attend a four-year
college and major in nursing.
Eventually, I would love to become a
labor-and-delivery nurse.
Giovanni Vigilante
School, grade:
Valley High
School, 12
Parents:
Anthony and
Nicole Vigilante
Academic
achievements:
2017 Yosemite
Nature Bridge Alcoa Scholarship;
National Honor Society; Spanish
National Honor Society; Top 10 Ban-quet,
No. 1 in the class; The Challenge
Program STEM Award; The Challenge
Program Academic Excellence Award;
AP Scholar Award; valedictorian.
Extracurricular activities: Tennis;
Quiz Bowl; soccer; Science Club; Art
Club; Math League; student council;
Mock Trial; Leo Club; Interact Club.
Community involvement: Grant
through The Sprout Fund to create
and teach a three-day “Critter Camp”
to educate local children about bugs;
Serenity Hill Farms; Pittsburgh Zoo
and PPG Aquarium; National Aviary;
The Buddy Program.
Plans/goals: For as long as I can
remember, biology, nature and culture
have been my primary passions.
While in college, I hope to combine
these academic interests and one day
make a lasting positive impact on the
world.
Joseph Tonecha
School, grade:
Kiski Area
High School, 12
Guardian: Lori
Tonecha
Academic
achievements:
Math Team, first-place
at a MCWP
League section competition; co-cap-tain
of school Math Team during sec-tion
math competitions; Westinghouse
Science Honors Institute; College in
High School Courses; AP Scholar with
Honor; Top 5 percent of class.
Extracurricular activities: Math
team; tennis; Key Club; Future Busi-ness
Leaders of America; National
Honor Society.
Community involvement: Volun-teered
setting up and tearing down
equipment before and after church;
Dairy Queen employee; peer tutoring.
Plans/goals: In the field of com-puter
science, I hope to apply the
computational thinking it instills
toward advancing other STEM-related
disciplines and assisting in challeng-ing
whatever quandaries pervade on
the frontiers of these fields. Whatever
it might be, I hope to dissolve any dis-heartening
situation, with whatever
innovation my mind may will and my
hope can contend.
Ann Walsh
School, grade:
Bishop Canevin
Catholic High
School, 11
Parent: Joyce
James
Academic
achievements: St.
Ignatius Scholars
Program; High Honor Roll; AP History
course; Honors History; Honors Math,
Science and English; Honors Algebra
II summer self-study.
Extracurricular activities: Center
for Theater Arts; church youth group;
student ambassador; Junior Achieve-ment
teacher; Irish Club/International
Club; Crusaders for Justice; musical.
Community involvement: Medallion
Ball candidate; Bishop Canevin mis-sion
trips; Catholic Charities events;
St. Winifred Food Pantry.
Plans/goals: After volunteering
with people that have various needs
throughout high school, I became
passionate about helping people in
need and decided to dedicate myself
to improving people’s lives who need
care by studying to become a physi-cian
assistant. I plan to study abroad
to obtain an additional perspective
and continue to volunteer in the local
theater community and organizations
that help those in need.
Vincenzia Vargo
School, grade:
Mars High
School, 11
Parents: Anthony
and Carmelina
Vargo
Academic
achievements:
High Honor Roll;
Women in Science Day Award; Society
of Women Engineers Certificate of
Merit; American Legion Nominee; Ex-cellence
in Technology Award; Presi-dent’s
Education Award Program;
MASD Student of the Month.
Extracurricular activities: University
of Pittsburgh INVESTING NOW Stu-dent
Advisory Committee; Universtiy
of Pittsbrugh Internet-based Educa-tional
Modules; Society of Future Engi-neers
Club; National Honor Society.
Community involvement: Mars
Area Public Library; Camp Invention
Leadership Intern; Jubilee Kitchen.
Plans/goals: As a junior high-honors
student, my goal is to be accepted
into the University of Pittsburgh
School of Medicine’s Guaranteed
Admit Program and to obtain an
undergraduate degree in the field of
bioengineering with a minor in Span-ish.
Thereafter, I plan to attend the
University of Pittsburgh School of
Medicine.
Kacie Zakin
School, grade:
Fox Chapel Area
High School, 12
Parent: Kara Zakin
Academic
achievements:
National Honor
Society; Spanish
National Honor
Society; Member of Global Scholars
Program; teachers assistant for Span-ish
1 and 3; Honors; Recognized for
STEM through the American Associa-tion
of University Women; Completed
multiple AP and Accelerated Classes.
Extracurricular activities: Led stu-dent
in planning for Madrid Exchange
at Fox Chapel Area High School;
worked alongside the Spanish Depart-ment
at my school to plan and attend
a student-exchange program.
Community involvement: Girl
Scouts; various community service
projects; after-school day care pro-gram
coordinator; babysitting.
Plans/goals: My plans are to go
into the field of global health so I can
travel the world and become im-mersed
into many different cultures,
while caring for any person who needs
medical attention because equal ac-cess
to healthcare and safety should
not be determined by what part of the
world we live in today.
Mikayla Ulizzi
School, grade:
Montour High
School, 12
Parents: Tammy
and Michael Ulizzi
Academic
achievements:
Honor Roll; Jef-ferson
Awards
Foundation Certificate Of Excellence
In Recognition Of Outstanding Youth
Leadership In Public Service; Spartan
Spirit Nominee.
Extracurricular activities: Peer-to-
Peer Empowerment Program;
Montour Association of Marketing
and Advertising; Interact Club; Ran-dom
Acts of Kindness Club; Freshman
Leadership; basketball; softball.
Community involvement: Employed
by Montour School District (summer)
to assist with the technology depart-ment;
facilitated selling bracelets
within our school community for
domestic and teen dating violence
awareness; delivered Thanksgiv-ing
dinners to families in need; food
drives; nursing home visits.
Plans/goals: My plan is to attend
Slippery Rock University or Rob-ert
Morris University to obtain my
bachelor’s degree in early childhood
education. My goal is to become an
inspiring teacher/educator.
Emily Yosi
School, grade:
Baldwin High
School, 12
Parent: Joanne
Farrell
Academic
achievements:
Maintain above a
4.0 GPA; Na-tional
Honor Society; Certificate
of Fundraising Achievement from
CASANA; Highest Honors.
Extracurricular activities: Cross
country; indoor track, outdoor track;
French Club; Key Club; Math League;
Divician Society; Special Olympics
Club; soccer; orchestra.
Community involvement: Key Club;
coordinated bracelet sales for Apraxia
Awareness; organized Walk for Aprax-ia;
Organized Carnation sale to benefit
Women’s Organization; oversaw food
drive to donate to a homeless shelter;
arranged clothing drive to donate to
Hazelwood Church; Recycling Day.
Plans/goals: I plan to attend
Chatham University to study medicine
in their integrated physician assistant
program and run cross country in
the fall. I hope to obtain a job as a
successful physician assistant after
graduating with a masters degree,
have a family and continue to volun-teer
in my community.
Jenna Toohey
School, grade:
Mt Pleasant Area
Junior/Senior
High School, 12
Parents: Jeanne
and Paul Toohey
Academic
achievements:
Student council;
Excellent Honors; National Honor
Society; Glass Festival Student that
Sparkles Award; National Music
Honor Society; Tri-M National Span-ish
Honor Society; Pennsylvania Free
Enterprise Scholar; Daughters of the
American Revolution Good Citizens
Award Nominee.
Extracurricular activities: Students
Strengthened by Christ; soccer; Oscar
for Best Female Vocals in Godspell;
Prom Princess; Homecoming Queen;
Christmas Dance Snowball Queen;
Stage Right! Musical Theater scholar.
Community involvement: Youth
Group; Hempfield Manor; Christian
Layman Corporation; Red Door
Homeless Shelter; Frick Hospital.
Plans/goals: I plan to attend a
four-year college and earn a degree
in chemistry or biochemistry with
an emphasis on research. I plan to
go onto either medical school or
chiropractic school and use my skills
to help and benefit others.
Jeffrey Wilkinson
School, grade:
Kiski Area
High School, 12
Parents: Amy and
Dave Wilkinson
Academic
achievements:
World Affairs
Council Global
Travel Scholarship; High Honor Roll;
6th of 295 in my class (Top 10 per-cent);
National Math and Science Ini-tiative
Recognized Scholar; Pennsyl-vania
Highest Education Assistance
Agency Certificate of Merit; National
Honor Society, president.
Extracurricular activities: Eagle
Scout; Order of the Arrow Rec-ognition;
World Affairs Council of
Pittsburgh Global Scholar; earned
scholarship to study climate change
in Vietnam for a month; soccer; track;
Academic Quiz Team; Jazz Choir;
Math Team; Future Business Leaders
of America; chorus; Link Krew.
Community involvement: Church
Board of Elders youth representative;
church bell choir; youth soccer referee.
Plans/goals: I plan on attending a
four-year university to study law so
that, eventually, I can hold public of-fice.
I want to make a difference in the
world and shape a better future for
tomorrow.