At the end of each school year, Middle School students are recognized for their academic achievement in front of the entire Middle School faculty, staff and student body. 2015-2016 was no exception as students were honored for a multitude of accomplishments.
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Grade 5 Mindset Awards:
Leighton Batcheller
This student is strong ethical decision maker, displaying a high level of empathy towards others. She goes out of her way to try and cheer people up and provide assistance without being prompted. She humbly and selflessly provides community service without expecting anything back in return.
Annabeth Hoyal
This creative, humble student is a good friend and leader who brings a lovely energy to the classroom. She helps to keep her peers engaged and on topic and does an excellent job balancing humor with seriousness.
Jack Isakson
This student is willing to politely challenge facts made by teachers and students. One time he sent Ms. Domby an email saying that he highly doubted her science “fact of the week” and requested research-based proof to back up her claim. He follows his own moral compass, demonstrating independence and maturity beyond his years.
Sam Worth
This student is incredibly enthusiastic and curious. He always asks questions and is persistent until an issue is resolved. He has become a role model for other students because he is kind to all of his classmates and goes out of his way to make sure everyone is included.
Grade 6 Mindset Awards:
Sydney Carroll
This young lady knows who she is, and that is why people are attracted to her. Naturally gifted in the world of academics, she shines. Yet her personality and willingness to help others are her greatest assets. Congratulations to Sydney Carroll for being the bright light that she is.
Reed Collins
This young man is a leader inside and outside of the classroom, serving as a role model in the hallways and at lunch/recess. A giving student and friend, he balances just the right amount of responsibility and joy. Congratulations to Reed Collins for representing Grade 6 so admirably.
Olivia Ramsey
This model student is rarely seen without a smile. Encouraging to her classmates and teammates, she puts extraordinary effort into everything that she does; even when she does not succeed, her goal is to know why. We applaud Olivia Ramsey for being the Poster Child for the Mount Vernon mindsets.
Sam Whiting
Don’t let this student’s quiet demeanor and thoughtful questions surprise you. Assertive on the tennis court yet humble with his success, you can count on him to make wise choices in work ethic. Sam Whiting consistently embodies the Mindsets.
Grade 7 Mindset Awards:
Justin Blumencranz
This student’s warm and open disposition add so much to every class and group. He is naturally curious and takes the time and effort necessary to get his head around a difficult problem or concept. He routinely associates seemingly unrelated topics in class, demonstrating his creative thinking and problem solving skills. He is a conscientious and diligent student whose work ethic is stellar.
Emily Kanderis
This student has a depth and authenticity way beyond her years. A masterful communicator, she clearly articulates her ideas and insights through both the written and spoken word. She sets clear goals for herself and works diligently to achieve them.
Sarah Pope
In a very short time as a Mustang, this student has demonstrated a rich development of the Mount Vernon Mind. A true collaborator, she leads her classmates with kindness and humility. She diligently and creatively works on whatever task is put before her and she challenges those around her to do so as well.
Ethan Ray
This student is able to see problems from many perspectives which leads him to ask unique, meaningful questions and generate deep empathy for others. He deeply explores characters and topics and communicates his insights in a powerful way. He embraces unexpected obstacles and looks for opportunities to learn in the face of challenges.
Grade 8 Mindset Awards:
Nate Anderson
This student is an exceptional communicator and creative thinker. He consistently justifies mathematical concepts in creative and intuitive ways, both verbally and in writing. He has a passion for asking strong questions, and his ability to seek meaningful solutions led his collaboration with his team as Emperor Hirohito during the trial debating the Atomic Bomb in his grammar composition class.
Grace Keller
This student is an attentive listener, pointed speaker, and an amazing communicator, as evidenced throughout the school year in class discussions and through difficult negotiation simulations in social studies. She is able to empathize with multiple perspectives and asks meaningful questions to guide engaging discussions in her math class. Her leadership and dedication in the Student Council has had a tremendous impact in the Middle School Building.
Jack Palmer
This student is the epitome of a true team player, being trusted by his peers to move the team forward and take risks. He leads with empathy, and he leverages the strengths of each individual peer in his classes in order to create meaningful solutions and products, as evidenced by his semester long iterations with his team on the Syrian Design Thinking Challenge. He leads by example.
Catherine Shanks
This student is a deep and profound creative thinker, and her maturity nurtures her capacity for ethical decision making and empathy. She is a communicator at heart, from excelling in literary analyses, to expressing her curiosity for and knowledge about ancient Mediterranean mythology in Latin. She is not afraid to take risks, and her desire for feedback nurtures her passion for iteration and innovation when creating authentic demonstrations of learning.
National Junior Honor Society: The National Junior Honor Society recognizes academic excellence that is consistently displayed through several semesters of hard work. To be eligible, a student must meet the following criteria: at least three semesters of attendance at Mount Vernon, a cumulative average of an 85 or higher over the past three semesters, and competence in the following areas: scholarship, character, service, citizenship, and leadership. Ms. Seet will now light a candle in honor of each of those pillars of the society. We are so proud of your hard work that has led to this honor.
When the National Junior Honor Society was founded in 1929, the hope was to create an organization that would recognize and encourage academic achievement among middle school students while also developing other characteristics essential to citizens in a democracy. These ideals of scholarship, character, service, citizenship, and leadership remain as relevant today as they were in 1929. The National Junior Honor Society hopes to promote student achievement over the entire middle school career.
NJHS Inductees
- Gillian Adams
- Thomas Andersen
- Caroline Betz
- Justin Blumencranz
- Ben Burke
- Sammi Carman
- Gill Christian
- Belle Colley
- Bryce Cumming
- Alyssa Dautrich
- Erik Dodder
- Aidan English
- Ian Erickson
- Molly Flanagan
- Cole Forrest
- Dylan Gantt
- Will Garner
- Grayson Goerdel
- Riley Hansen
- Chris Hardie
- Nicole Hedrick
- Kanna House
- Will Hudson
- Amelia Humphrey
- Alec Johnson
- Emily Kanderis
- Mason King
- Blake Kytle
- Sydney Levitan
- Robbie Long
- Jake Lortz
- Eleanor Madderra
- Kate Maxwell
- Eli McCall
- Chandler Meier
- Alma Merchant
- Anusha Merchant
- Aqil Merchant
- Josh Mills
- Holly Mitchell
- Coulton Musser
- Tabitha Nagy
- Audrey OToole
- Katie Peddle
- Dillon Procter
- Emily Raeside
- Ryan Rapaport
- Ethan Ray
- Jacob St. Denis
- Sarah Schab
- Ryan Seeber
- Jack Sims
- Anjali Singh
- Susanna Soelberg
- Trey Tiffin
- Christine Turnbull
- Rachel Turner
- Ella Uhde
- Zack Van Putten
- Carson Will
- Abbott Wright
- Jordan Yager
Duke TIP (Talent Identification Program): We would like to recognize the students who participated in the 2016 Duke University Talent Identification Program’s 7th Grade Talent Search. Candidates are invited to take the ACT or the SAT college entrance exams as seventh graders. This year’s honorees have scored approximately at or above the national average of recent high school graduates on at least one part of the ACT or the SAT.
- Dylan Gantt
- Riley Hansen
- Chris Hardie
- Eleanor Madderra
- Susanna Soelberg
- Ella Uhde
National Language Exams: This year, all grades 7 and 8 students learning a world language participated in the National French Exam, National Spanish Exam, and National Latin Exam. These exams, given across the country, help promote proficiency of communication in another language.
National French Exam Honorable Mentions
- Myka Deans
- Will Moorman
- Kylie Smith-Wolfe
National Spanish Exam Honorable Mentions
- Justin Blumencranz
- Alyssa Dautrich
- Ian Erickson
- Will Garner
- Alma Merchant
- Anusha Merchant
- Tabitha Nagy
- Jack Sims
- Olivia Barnes
- Livie Guyton
- Caroline Jeffrey
- Alex Morge
- Mica Nohstadt
- Nick Pierce
- Casey Scheele
- Sarah Sims
- Skyler Tiffin
Bronze Award
- Gillian Adams
- Chris Hardie
- Aqil Merchant
- Susanna Soelberg
- Melinda Lee Carden
- Maddy Jakes
- Grace Keller
- Katieanne Peterson
Silver Award
- Eliza Bruno
- Emery Dikeman
- Katie Jones
- Josie Meade
- Ricardo Ruiz (placed second in the state for bilingual speakers in his division)
- Alex Thomas
Gold Award
- Nicole Hedrick (placed third in the state for her division)
National Latin Exam – Certificate of Honorable Merit, Cum Laude
- Sophia Gavalas
- Catherine Shanks
Prefect Award: We are so proud to award Patrick Casey the distinction of the Prefect Award. Patrick is a great ambassador for MV Middle, and he has demonstrated leadership and academic excellence all year. Patrick is giving of himself and his time, considerate of the needs of his classmates, a dedicated student and athlete, and strives to ensure his peers are included and recognized. He is selfless, and is quick to praise the team instead of his own efforts. On the first day of this school year, Patrick (without being told) sought out a new student to Mount Vernon to befriend him and help him throughout his first day of school. He is a true leader with a servant’s heart, and he is well respected and admired by his peers and faculty. Congratulations, Patrick!
Athletics
Most Outstanding Athlete Award
- Boy: Alex Holliday
- Girl: Gracie Hudgins
Tri-Sport Athletes
Grade 5
- Brooks Champney
- Greg Fuentes
- Hunter Guttery
- Rylan Kruep
- Adam Nagy
- Liam OToole
Grade 6
- Eliot Ciuperca
- Reed Collins
- Spencer Corley
- Hayden France
- William House
- Landry Kruep
- Jackson Langley
- William Lavender
- Parker Logue
- Tyler Long
- Tyler Lutes
- Sara McLeod
- Avery Grace Messner
- Savanna Messner
- Will Palmer
- Cooper Patnode
- Olivia Ramsey
- Kendall Slayden
- Austin Taylor
Grade 7
- Gillian Adams
- Isabelle Colley
- Erik Dodder
- Ian Erickson
- Jordan Jasper
- Blake Kytle
- Coulton Musser
- Audrey OToole
- Dillon Procter
- Sarah Schab
- Trey Tiffin
- Zack Van Putten
Grade 8
- Jack Palmer
- Charlie Baynton
- Caroline Bernstein
- Parker Carman
- Jonathan Hammond
- Alex Holliday
- Hunter McCown
- Josie Meade
- Alex Mette
- Nick Pierce
- James Robison
- Weston Schwartz
- Skylar Stefaniak-Earley
- Bennett Williams
Visual and Performing Arts: At Mount Vernon, we recognize that each student has creative and artistic abilities. Our teaching artists work alongside student artists to cultivate creative skills and discover talents each and every day. The following students have passionately pursued their creative skills in multiple genre from visual art to theatre, music and dance. We want to recognize these outstanding MVArtists for their passion, creativity and pursuit of artistic excellence.”
Grade 5
- Jai Deans
- Zandy Geiger
Grade 6
- Reed Garzon
- Lauren Roush
Grade 7
- Belle Colley
- Tabitha Nagy
Grade 8
- Skyler Tiffin
- Katie Goodwyn
Head of Middle School Award: This award is presented to the student at each grade level who demonstrates academic excellence by earning the highest cumulative grade point average during the first three quarters of the school year.
Grade 5: Kate Tudor
Grade 6 (tie): Isabel Dempsey and Lexi Elias
Grade 7: Aqil Merchant
Grade 8: Skyler Tiffin
Congratulations to all Middle School students for an outstanding year!
