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Published on 06/12/1995 All articles from this issue

Honors abound among MV-LA high school students this year

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If the awards and honors already achieved are any indication, students in the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District have a bright future ahead of them.

Students have achieved an incredible number of honors and scholarships this year according to Los Altos High School Career Center Counselor Elaine Cooper and Barbara Bogomilsky, who runs the Career Center at Mountain View High School. "And more are coming in every day," Cooper said.

Five Los Altos High School students received National Merit Scholarships, 11 students were National Merit Finalists and five students achieved a cumulative 4.0 grade point average. In addition, LAHS senior Jocelyn Wiener was one of only four students in the state selected as a 1995 Presidential Scholar.

In addition to these honors, many students received scholarships for the schools they plan to attend in the fall. Toki Rehder, for example, received a $5,000 scholarship sponsored by 7-Up Bottling Company, Lucky Stores and the League of Women Voters. Toki will attend Swarthmore College in the fall.

Cooper estimates that almost 90 percent of the graduating seniors will attend college next fall. The list of schools admitting district students contain names of some of the most exclusive and prestigious ones in the nation.

"Students will be attending Brown, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Princeton, Vassar, Yale and Stanford as well as schools like UC Berkeley and Foothill College locally," Cooper said.

Honors for Mountain View High School graduating seniors are also impressive. Eight students were named valedictorians, six students were National Merit Finalists, 11 received Commended Scholar honors and there were 70 CSF Gold Seal graduates, an honor awarded only to students achieving a 3.5 or higher grade point average.

Several MVHS students received special honors from the colleges they have chosen to attend. Erik Kreft will attend the University of Hawaii at Manoa on a full music scholarship and Billy Stubblefield is heading to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on a full academic scholarship.

Many other students were also singled out for honors upon college admission due to academic excellence. Bogomilsky said students have been accepted at a number of prestigious schools this year, including Cornell, Brigham Young, George Washington, Princeton, Reed, Wellesely and Stanford as well as both UC and state schools.

Superintendent Don Phillips isn't surprised that district students have been admitted to the top colleges in the nation. He credits a district-wide focus on preparing students for life after high school, whether that means four-year college, community college, work or a career in the military.

"We have a commitment to continuous improvement for all students. This year's class is a wonderful example of what can happen when motivated students are challenged by a rigorous academic curriculum and highly trained teachers and staff," Phillips said.