Senior Rylee Chelette is all smiles as she accepts the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce Scholarship award of $1,500 on May 16 from chamber board president Bill Burr, who is also the schools superintendent.
From left: Seniors Leroy Wynne, Elias Decker, Jacen Hay and Ethan Blatchley share their plans after graduation with the audience during the academic achievement awards and scholarship ceremony in the high school gym on May 16.
As the school year wraps up and learning winds down, students were recognized for their outstanding achievements.
The annual academic and scholarship award ceremony held on May 16 in the Wrangell High School gym highlighted the hard work put in by eighth through 12th graders. Teachers, administrators, community and business leaders gathered to present the students with certificates, plaques and checks.
Awards were given in the areas of general education, shop class, finance, student government and others, while scholarships totaled $783,256, of which almost $100,000 were from local organizations. Nearly half of the scholarship funds went to senior Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch, who was awarded $331,040 from the QuestBridge scholarship from Boston University, where he will attend school in the fall.
One award didn't focus on academic achievement as much as it looked at the recipient's approach to life.
"Through the course of the year, I've identified somebody that I want to provide an award called 'From the Heart,'" said retiring principal Bob Burkhart. "I heard about the newspaper article being written and blogs, and I saw her helping and always giving 100%, being sincere ... and doing the very best she can to be a great giver in the school community." The award was presented to junior Mia Wiederspohn.
The following is a list of the awards presented and scholarships given.
Presented by Heather Howe
T3 Alliance
Paige Hoyt
Miranda Ridgeway
Donovan Wood
Timothy Pearson
Ander Edens
Kayla Young
Spencer Petticrew
Sean McDonald
William Ashton
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Killian Booker
Silje Morse
Andrei Bardin-Siekawitch
Clara Carney
Angus Booker
Brogan Booker
Student government
Addy Andrews
Ander Edens
Max Lloyd
Sean McDonald
Mia Wiederspohn
Will Ashton
Devlyn Campbell
Brodie Gardner
Treasurer: Rylee Chelette
Secretary: Spencer Petticrew
Vice president: Daniel Harrison
President: Kiara Harrison
RASOR (Rural Alaska Students in One-Health Research)
Daniel Harrison
Jacen Hay
Mia Wiederspohn
Fish Tech Program
Rylee Chelette
Science Achievement Awards
Clara Edens
Andrei Bardin-Siekawitch
William Ashton
Rylee Chelette
Brodie Gardner
Presented by Tasha Morse
Music Squared (dedication to the music program)
Ander Edens
Kalee Herman
Saxophone Award (enthusiasm in music)
Killian Booker
Honor Fest Award
Paige Baggen
Ander Edens
All State Music
Ander Edens
Music Fest Award
Ander Edens
Tri-M Awards (3.5 GPA)
Kiara Harrison
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Artist Award
Clara Edens
Anika Herman
Artistic Dreamer
Paige Baggen
Art Student of the Year
Paige Baggen
Presented by Lisa Brooks
English Students of the Year
Paige Hoyt
Clara Edens
Presented by Matt Nore
Outstanding Athlete
Lucas Schneider
Sportsmanship Award
Timothy Pearson
Jackson Powers
Presented by Julie Williams
Dual credit/College credit or Career and Technical Ed classes completed independently
Kiara Harrison
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Sean McDonald
Mia Wiederspohn
Spencer Petticrew
Paige Baggen
Timothy Pearson
Nathan Rooney
Brody Knecht
Presented by Odile Meister
Outstanding Achievement in Spanish awards
Spanish 2: Devlyn Campbell
Spanish 3: Kiara Harrison, Will Ashton, Spencer Petticrew
Presented by Donna Massin
Outstanding Work in Algebra 1
Madelyn Davies
Hailey Cook
Outstanding Work in Geometry
Jackson Carney
Ben Houser
Paige Hoyt
Clara Edens
Outstanding Work in Algebra 2
Ander Edens
Outstanding Work in Precalculus
Spencer Petticrew
Outstanding Work in Calculus
Daniel Harrison
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Algebra 1 Student of the Year
Alana Harrison
Geometry Student of the Year
Andrei Bardin-Siekawitch
Algebra 2 Student of the Year
Kayla Young
Precalculus Student of the Year
Rylee Chelette
Calculus Student of the Year
Will Ashton
Presented by Virginia Oliver
Novice Tlingit Language Learner
Kyle Hommel
Medium-Level Novice Tlingit Language Learner
Zeke Young
Most Enthusiastic Tlingit Language Learner
Boomchain Loucks
Presented by Jack Carney
Outstanding Achievement Award – Health
Clara Edens
Paige Hoyt
Boomchain Loucks
Tyra Meissner
Christina Johnson
Adam Smith's Outstanding Achievement Award – Economics
William Ashton
Kiara Harrison
Daniel Harrison
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Wolf of Wrangell (earned over $28,000 on stock market simulator)
Zekale Young
Budget Challenge (earned all six trophies in personal finance simulator)
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Kiara Harrison
Elias Decker
Outstanding Achievement Award – World History
Spencer Petticrew
Ander Edens
Kayla Young
Mia Wiederspohn
Christiana Johnson
Daniel Harrison
Most Improved Athlete Award – Strength Training
Brody Knecht
Presented by Winston Davies
Shop Student of the Year
Jacen Hay
Outstanding Beginner Welder
Brody Knecht
Most Improved Woodworker
Max Lloyd
Workhorse Award
Ben Houser
Digital Drafting Student of the Year
Paige Hoyt
Scholarships
University of Alaska Scholars ($12,000 total, $1,500 per semester for eight semesters)
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Kiara Harrison
Alaska Performance Scholarship
Level 1 (up to $4,755)
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Kiara Harrison
Level 2 (up to $3,566)
Paige Baggen
Level 3 (up to $2,378)
Will Ashton
Alaska Pulp Scholarship ($5,000 per year, renewable for four years)
Devlyn Campbell
Rylee Chelette
Brodie Gardner
Pat Roppel Memorial Scholarship ($3,000)
Kiara Harrison
Sig and Helen Decker Memorial Scholarship ($3,000)
Devlyn Campbell
AAU Helen Decker "Living Beautifully" Scholarship ($2,000)
Devlyn Campbell
Brodie Gardner
Kiara Harrison
Jacen Hay
Frieda Lust Scholarship ($100)
Rylee Chelette
Alfred Ryll Scholarship ($100)
Brodie Gardner
Wrangell Teachers' Association ($500)
Kiara Harrison
Jumpstart Your Life Award, Tongass Federal Credit Union ($1,500)
Brodie Gardner
Alaska Native Sisterhood Camp No. 1 ($500)
Brodie Gardner
Kiks.adi Scholarship ($500)
Randy Churchill III
WMC Foundation Health Careers Scholarship ($1,000 for four years)
Devlyn Campbell
Rylee Chelette
Brodie Gardner
Kiara Harrison
BASE Kindness Scholarship ($500)
Brodie Gardner
Colin Buness Memorial Scholarship ($1,000 for two years)
Brodie Gardner
Wrangell Chamber of Commerce Scholarship ($1,500)
Rylee Chelette
Elks Most Valuable Student Participants ($200)
Kiara Harrison
Wrangell Emblem Club No. 87 ($500)
Randy Churchill III
Virginia Kaspar Scholarship ($1,000)
Rylee Chelette
Joel Wing Scholarship ($1,000)
Devlyn Campbell
Greg Scheff Memorial Scholarship ($2,000)
Brodie Gardner
Allen Benjamin Scholarship ($1,000)
Paige Baggen
Washington State University WUE ($11,000, renewable for four years)
Brodie Gardner
California Institute of the Arts ($14,000 renewable for four years)
Paige Baggen
Quest Bridge, Boston University ($82,760, renewable for four years)
Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch
Gonzaga University (Presidential Scholarship $23,000, grant $8,000, renewable for four years)
Devlyn Campbell
Washington State University Cougar Award Waiver ($11,000, renewable for four years)
Rylee Chelette
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