Seventeen named Illinois state scholars at SJO

Seventeen St. Joseph-Ogden seniors were named to this year's State Scholar Program by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC).

Senior Kenly Taylor holds a game ball and the Spartans' 2019 state third place trophy at Redbird Arena after the awards ceremony for Class 2A at the IHSA Volleyball State Finals. Taylor and four teammates from the final four team were named State Scholars this past week. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Illinois students attain state scholar recognition by maintaining an outstanding level of academic performance during high school. In order to be considered, they must be ranked in the top one-half of their class by the end of their third semester prior to graduation. Finally, the student's ACT or SAT score must reach be in the 95th percentile or higher. Only students attending approved Illinois public high schools are considered for this honorary recognition and it is awarded upon successful graduation from the accredited school.

This year's recipients are: Lindsey Aden, Mallory Ames, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Ginny Bytnar, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Erica Guelfi, Ava Mills, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Jenna Schaefer, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Isabelle Vliet, Zoey Witruk.

Created by state lawmakers in 1957, the Deerfield, Illinois, based commission's main goal is to make post-secondary education accessible and affordable for resident high school students in Illinois through grants, scholarships and available loan programs.

75 SJO seniors named to 3rd quarter Honor Roll

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St. Joseph-Ogden's Dillon Uken provides protection on the line of scrimmage in his team's first-round game against Monticello on October 27 during last fall's IHSA football postseason playoffs. Uken was one of 75 SJO seniors who made the third quarter Honor Roll. (PhotoNews File Photo/Clark Brooks)

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Seventy-five seniors, 67 juniors, 57 sophomores and 69 freshmen earned recognition for academic excellence in the third quarter at St. Joseph-Ogden High School.

Students named to the High Honors earned GPAs of 3.75 or higher on a 4.0 scale. Those attaining GPAs of 3.25 to 3.74 are recognized as Honor Roll students.

 

High Honor Roll

Seniors: Gage Atwood, Cassidy Bagby, Erin Beyers, Kaylee Blanchard, Rebecca Campbell, Sarah Chahine, David Cummins, Emmy Daniels, Liam Davis, Abigail Dunham, Avery Edwards, Nathan Emmert, Emory Ericksen, Jasmine Febus, Emilie Fox, Adam Frerichs, Rachel Gherna, Zachary Hill, Kalli Ingram, Kenneth Lahners, Hannah Lewis, Nathan Logan, Erinn Miller, Caroline Moore, Eve Owens, Angela Palmer, Benjamin Reitmeier, Adam Rose, Madison Rubin, Abigail Schlueter, Elizabeth Schluter, Samantha Schmidt, Benjamin Setterdahl, Jacob Shaw, Kaitlin Shoviak, Grant Siegmund, Rylee Sjuts, Brianna Suits, Maclayne Taylor and Nathan Walden.

Juniors: Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Asjah Fonner, Jaiden Freeman, Robert Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Eliza Lewis, Nathan Maier, Sara Milioli, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Alivia Norem, Nolan Peacock, Taddy Pettit, Eric Poe, Dyllan Price, Hannah Rajlich, Lexi Ribbe, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Madie Warfel, Brayden Weaver, Sam Wesley, Zoey Witruk and Jackson Wooten.

Sophomores: Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Nadirah Edwards, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Cailer Kellenberger, Shelby Kofoot, Spencer Lahners, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Alyssa Maddock, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Brandon Mattsey, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painer, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt, Rachel Wilson and Logan Wolfersberger.

Freshmen: Addison Allen, Tyler Altenbaumer, Kailyn Anderson, Ella Armstrong, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Andrew Beyers, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Angela Chahine, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Benjamin Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Zella Fuqua, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Alyssa Hamilton, Lauren Harper, Anthony Hoang, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Jacey Lewis, Kelsey Martlage, Sophia McDade, Coby Miller, Conrad Miller, Elijah Mock, Keaton Nolan, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach, Mackenzie Trame, Ethan Vanliew and Taylor Wells.

       

Honor Roll

Seniors: Sullivan Alwes, Nicholas Boggs, Joel Branson, Makayla Buskirk, Brooke Butorac, Ripley Campbell, Kayla Cañas, Daniel Carlson, Amanda Craddock, Ashtyn Cromwell, Peyton Crowe, Chloe Duckett, Michael Foreman, Cole Franzen, Bryce Froeschl, Mikayla Harshbarger, Kaitlyn Hess, Michelle Jervis, Dylan Johnson, Shelby McElroy, Ryan Miller, Joel Orcutt, Karsyn Peters, Raymond Plotner, Kathryn Poulter, Hanson Rieches, Libby Rowland, Niko Russell, Clare Smith, Savannah Smith, Dillon Uken, Rylee Walsh, Jack Ward, Seth Wedig and Alyssa Whitlock.

Juniors: Kendall Ayers, Kolton Batty, Erin Bridgewater, Payton Clements, Brendan Cooperider, Bailey Dowling, Tristan Fuqua, Ethan Hinrichs, Conner Hodge, Keegan McCarty, Mason McLain, Allison Monk, Luke Renfrew, Brodie Sullivan, Anna Wentzloff and Karsyn Wetzel.

Sophomores: Haven Atwood, Hunter Brooks, Joshua Buttjer, Raegan Crippen, Jacob Dwyer, Alex Frerichs, Emily Froman, Carter Huffman, Hayden Knott, Brock Loschen, Alyssa Lynch, Gunnar Olson, Brianna Reifsteck, Lizzie Reitmeier, Jackson Rydell, Lauren Trankina, Kaylee Ward and Mitchell Whitlock.

Freshmen: Nicolas Anzelmo, Jaden Barton, Alanna Bensyl, Kennedi Burnett, Braden Clampitt, Mackenzie Fulk, Hailey Gaines, Avian Gerdes, Kailyn Ingram, KayLeigh Kamphaus, Olivia Klotz, Ashlyn Lannert, Wyatt Loghry, Madelyn Mabry, Braden MeElroy, Ava Miller, Jett Morris, Nathaniel Nosler, Jonathan Poulter, Isabelle Scott and Karsten Wayland.

SJO celebrates Class of 2020 scholarship winners

This year's Honors Night was celebrated in a different format. Due to the state restrictions on large gatherings during the Covid-19 pandemic, St. Joseph-Ogden High School announced this year's award winners via video made available on YouTube.

"Even though we are not together in our gym and there were several scholarships that were not able to be given this year, the following is an amazing representation of how intelligent and talented our young people are," said SJO principal Gary Page in his introduction.

Watch the video below to learn about the 21 scholarships earned by the Class of 2020.

SJO Class of 2020 Scholarship
Award Winners

Jenna Schaefer
Chamber of Commerce Scholarship
Illinois State Scholarship
National Merit Scholarship Letter of Commendation

Tristan Fuqua
St. Joseph Masonic Foundation Scholarship

Hannah Rajlich
Papa Pridemore Memorial Scholarship
Illinois State Scholar

Taddy Pettit
Papa Pridemore Memorial Scholarship

Jenna Albrecht
C-U Optimist Club Scholarship
American Legion Award
Lexi Barbour Memorial Scholarship

Lindsey Aden
FFA Alumni Scholarships
Illinois State Scholar
Anderson's Scholarship
Farm Bureau Womens Committee Scholarship
Champaign County Farm Bureau Scholarship
National Merit Scholarship Letter of Commendation

Mallory Ames
FFA Alumni Scholarships
Illinois State Scholar
Bayer Fund Farmers Grow Ag Leaders Scholarship
Ag Future of America Scholarship
Vincent O’Greene Memorial Scholarship

Brodie Sullivan
FFA Alumni Scholarships

Katelyn Berry
Illinois State Scholar
Daughters of the American Revolution

Emily Bigger
Illinois State Scholar

Ginny Bytnar
Illinois State Scholar

Andrea Cunningham
Illinois State Scholar

Faith Dahman
Illinois State Scholar

Hannah Dukeman
Illinois State Scholar
Illini Prairie Conference Scholar Athlete

Erica Guelfi
Illinois State Scholar
John Phillips Sousa Award
Lutheran Community Foundation Scholarship
The National Merit Scholarship

Ava Mills
Illinois State Scholar

Eric Poe
Illinois State Scholar

Kenly Taylor
Illinois State Scholar

Stephanie Trame
Illinois State Scholar

Isabelle Vliet
Illinois State Scholar

Zoey Witruk
Illinois State Scholar

Brayden Weaver
Sons of the American Revolution
Illini Prairie Conference Scholar Athlete

Payton Cain
American Legion Award

Danie Kelso
Lutheran Community Foundation Scholarship

Eliza Lewis
Lutheran Community Foundation Scholarship

Nathan Maier
Lutheran Community Foundation Scholarship

Cody Johnston
St. Joseph Youth Baseball Little League Scholarship

Brendan Cooperider
St. Joseph Youth Baseball Little League Scholarship

Kendall Ayers
National Choral Award

Joshua Sexton
National Band Director’s Award

Rylee Stahl
Tammy Walsh Memorial Scholarship

Anna Wentzloff
Tammy Walsh Memorial Scholarship
St. Joseph Masonic Foundation Scholarship

Zach Seeley
Army

77 SJO seniors named on final honor roll of the year

The exceptional quality of education and unending commitment by the student body to excel was once again demonstrated by the final Honor Roll of the 2018-19 academic year.

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Seniors Sully Alwes, Gage Atwood and Cassidy Bagby mug for the camera during their commencement ceremony at St. Joseph-Ogden High School. In the final quarter of their high careeer, Atwood and Bagby earned a 3.75 GPA to be named to the High Honor Roll list. Alwes also earned honor roll recognition with a GPA greater than 3.25. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

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Seventy-seven St. Joseph-Ogden High School seniors earned scholastic accolades on the final Honor Roll list for this academic year. The junior class was paced by 64 members who achieved High Honor Roll or honor roll status. In all, more than 260 SJO students were named to the fourth quarter honor roll.

Students named to the High Honors earned GPAs of 3.75 or higher on a 4.0 scale. Those attaining GPAs of 3.25 to 3.74 are recognized as Honor Roll students.

 

High Honor Roll

Seniors: Gage Atwood, Cassidy Bagby, Erin Beyers, Rebecca Campbell, Sarah Chahine, David Cummins, Emmy Daniels, Liam Davis, Abigail Dunham, Avery Edwards, Nathan Emmert, Jasmine Febus, Michael Foreman, Emilie Fox, Adam Frerichs, Rachel Gherna, Zachary Hill, Kalli Ingram, Ken Lahners, Hannah Lewis, Nathan Logan, Caroline Moore, Eve Owens, Angela Palmer, Benjamin Reitmeier, Adam Rose, Madison Rubin, Abigail Schlueter, Elizabeth Schluter, Samantha Schmidt, Benjamin Setterdahl, acob Shaw, Kaitlin Shoviak, Grant Siegmund, Rylee Sjuts, Brianna Suits, Maclayne Taylor, Nathan Walden and Seth Wedig.

Juniors: Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Asjah Fonner, Jaiden Freeman, Bode Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Sara Milioli, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Allison Monk, Alivia Norem, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Lexi Ribbe, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Brayden Weaver, Samuel Wesley, Zoey Witruk and Jackson Wooten.

Sophomores: Hunter Brooks, Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Nadirah Edwards, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Alexandra Frerichs, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Cailer Kellenberger, Shelby Kofoot, Spencer Lahners, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Tyson Madsen, Sophie Martlage, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painter, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt and Logan Wolfersberger.

Freshmen: Addison Allen, Tyler Altenbaumer, Kailyn Anderson, Ella Armstrong, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Andrew Beyers, Brandie Bowln, Mara Burkhalter, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Benjamin Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Zella Fuqua, Avian Gerdes, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Lauren Harper, Anthony Hoang, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Sophia McDade, Coby Miller, Conrad Miller, Elijah Mock, Keaton Nolan, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, Kendra Riddle, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach, Mackenzie Trame and Taylor Wells.

       

Honor Roll

Seniors: Sullivan Alwes, Alex Blanchard, Nicholas Boggs, Joel Branson, Makayla Buskirk, Ripley Campbell, Kayla Cañas, Daniel Carlson, Dwight Colvin, Aiden Coon, Amanda Craddock, Peyton Crowe, Chloe Duckett, Emory Ericksen, Cole Franzen, Bryce Froeschl, Grant Goff, Haley Griebat, Kaleb Harshbarger, Mikayla Harshbarger, Kaitlyn Hess, Michelle Jervis, Dylan Johnson, Jake Juday, Kyler Master, Shelby McElroy, Erinn Miller, Ryan Miller, Heidi Novak, Karsyn Peters, Kathryn Poulter, Hanson Rieches, Niko Russell, Nicholas Skelton, Clare Smith, Dillon Uken, Rylee Walsh and Cole Zaccarelli

Juniors: Kendall Ayers, Kolton Batty, Erin Bridgewater, Brendan Cooperider, Bailey Dowling, Brayden Grimsey, Ethan Hinrichs, Julia Kaiser, Eliza Lewis, Nathan Maier, Keegan McCarty, Mason McLain, Nolan Peacock, Taddy Pettit, Dyllan Price, Madie Warfel, Anna Wentzloff and Karsyn Wetzel.

Sophomores: Haven Atwood, Mason Behrens, Josh Buttjer, Raegan Crippen, Sarah Dow, Makayla Duckwitz, Jacob Dywer, Britney Evans, Emily Froman, Isabella Getty, Alyssa Lynch, Alyssa Maddock, Brandon Mattsey, Brianna Reifsteck, Lizzie Reitmeier, Jackson Rydell, Lauren Trankina, Mitchell Whitlock and Rachel Wilson.

Freshmen: Jaden Barton, Alanna Bensyl, Ella Besson, Kennedi Burnett, Mackenzie Fulk, Alyssa Hamilton, Kailyn Ingram, Olivia Klotz, Ashlyn Lannert, Jacey Lewis, Madelyn Mabry, Kelsey Martlage, Braden McElroy, Ava Miller, Jett Morris, Nathaniel Nosler, Jackson Place, Jonathan Poulter, Griffin Roesch and Ethan Vanliew.

173 students earn High Honor Roll honors at SJO

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St. Joseph-Ogden's Justyn Frisby moves the ball down the field during his team's home game against St. Thomas More on September 13, 2018. Frisby was one of 173 SJO students to be recognized for their scholastic achievement during the second quarter of this academic year. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

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One hundred and seventy-three students received recognition for their exceptional scholastic achievement at St. Joseph-Ogden High School this week. Forty freshmen, 39 sophomores, 48 juniors and 46 seniors made the High Honors list after the second quarter this academic year.

Students recognized for high honors earned GPAs of 3.75 or higher on a 4.0 scale.

Another 98 students from the combined four classes secured GPAs of 3.25 to 3.74 to be listed on this quarter's honor roll.

St. Joseph-Ogden High School was one of 22 Illinois school districts was named to the 9th Annual AP District Honor Roll. The District Honor Roll is awarded to school districts that increase the number of students and advanced placement classes in combination with student performance on AP Exams. More than 370 schools in the United States and Canada were named to this year's list.

 

High Honor Roll

Freshmen: Addison Allen, Kailyn Anderson, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Kennedi Burnett, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Benjamin Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Lauren Harper, Anthony Hoang, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Kelsey Martlage, Sophia McDade, Coby Miller, Conrad Miller, Elijah Mock, Nathaniel Nosler, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach and Mackenzie Trame.

Sophomores: Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, Josh Buttjer, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Alex Frerichs, Emily Froman, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Shelby Kofoot, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Alyssa Maddock, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painter, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Kayleigh Roedl, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt, Rachel Wilson and Logan Wolfersberger.

Juniors: Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Asjah Fonner, Jaiden Freeman, Bode Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Eliza Lewis, Nathan Maier, Sara Milioli, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Allison Monk, Alivia Norem, Taddy Pettit, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Lexi Ribbe, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Madie Warfel, Brayden Weaver and Samuel Wesley.

Seniors: Sullivan Alwes, Gage Atwood, Cassidy Bagby, Erin Beyers, Nicholas Boggs, Joel Branson, Brooke Butorac, Rebecca Campbell, Kayla Cañas, Daniel Carlson, Sarah Chahine, David Cummins, Emmy Daniels, Liam Davis, Abigail Dunham, Avery Edwards, Nathan Emmert, Emory Ericksen, Jasmine Febus, Michael Foreman, Emilie Fox, Adam Frerichs, Justyn Frisby, Rachel Gherna, Mikayla Harshbarger, Zachary Hill, Kalli Ingram, Kenny Lahners, Hannah Lewis, Nathan Logan, Caroline Moore, Eve Owens, Benjamin Reitmeier, Adam Rose, Madison Rubin, Abigail Schlueter, Elizabeth Schluter, Samantha Schmidt, Benjamin Setterdahl, Jacob Shaw, Kaitlin Shoviak, Grant Siegmund, Rylee Sjuts, Brianna Suits, Maclayne Taylor and Nathan Walden.

Honor Roll

Freshmen: Tyler Altenbaumer, Ella Armstrong, Alanna Bensyl, Andrew Beyers, Allison Burnett, Zella Fuqua, Hailey Gaines, Avian Gerdes, Alyssa Hamilton, Kailyn Ingram, KayLeigh Kamphaus, Olivia Klotz, Ashlyn Lannert, Jacey Lewis, Madelyn Mabry, Braden MeElroy, Ava Meyer, Jett Morris, Keaton Nolan, Jackson Place, Jonathan Poulter, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Griffin Roesch, Grace Schmitz, Ethan Vanliew, Karsten Wayland and Taylor Wells.

Sophomores: Haven Atwood, Brady Buss, Raegan Crippen, Sarah Dow, Makayla Duckwitz, Jacob Dwyer, Nadirah Edwards, Bella Getty, Carter Huffman, Cailer Kellenberger, Spencer Lahners, Alyssa Lynch, Brandon Mattsey, Brianna Reifsteck, Jackson Rydell, Lauren Trankina and Mitchell Whitlock

Juniors: Kendall Ayers, Kolton Batty, Hailey Birt, Ross Booker, Erin Bridgewater, Brendan Cooperider, Bailey Dowling, Clayton Frederick, Tristan Fuqua, Ethan Hinrichs, Conner Hodge, Julia Kaiser, Keegan McCarty, Mason McLain, Nolan Peacock, Dyllan Price and Brodie Sullivan.

Seniors: Kaylee Blanchard, Makayla Buskirk, Ripley Campbell, Aiden Coon, Amanda Craddock, Ashtyn Cromwell, Peyton Crowe, Chloe Duckett, Cole Franzen, Katilyn Hess, Michelle Jervis, Jake Juday, Sally Manalo, Kyler Master, Keely McCorkle, Isiah McCune, Erinn Miller, Ryan Miller, Megan Mitchell, Joel Orcutt, Angela Palmer, Reid Patton, Raymond Plotner, Adam Porter, Kathryn Poulter, Joseph Rajlich, Annelise Rhoads, Libby Rowland, Clare Smith, Savannah Smith, Isabella Spisok, Dillon Uken, Jack Ward, Seth Wedig, Alyssa Whitlock and Cole Zaccarelli.

Wow! 42% of the student body earned academic letters at SJO

While St. Joseph-Ogden High School may be known outside of the community for its competitive prowess in sports like softball, baseball and football, all which receive a healthy dose of media attention through out the year, the student population is equally impressive when it comes to their studies and classroom pursuit.

Friday morning, SJO held an awards ceremony to recognize current students and May graduates from the Class of 2019 for their academic performance during the 2018-19 school year.

SJO students cheer for the football team at Friday's homecoming game against Pontiac. Despite a rigorous academic standards and plenty of opportunities for extracurricular activities, nearly half of the student population at the high school enjoys a GPA of 3.6 or better. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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One hundred and ninety-one individuals from last year's student body of 452 earned an academic letter. When you do the math, that is a remarkable number statistically and even more so when you compare it to other public schools not only in the area, but around the state.

"(It) means 42% of our students earned at least a 3.6 GPA for the entire school year, had no D or F’s, and was enrolled in at least five academic classes," said Principal Gary Page, III, in his address to students, parents and family members in attendance at an all-school assembly. "To put that in perspective if a student takes six academic classes they need an A in four classes and at least a B in the other two to achieve a 3.6."

Noting that the majority of the students are involved in two or more extracurricular pursuits like the performing arts, FFA or are multi-sport athletes, the number of students receiving an academic letter is certainly impressive.

"When you combine that statistic with our high standards for classroom rigor it screams excellence," Page said, proud of the accomplishment made by not only the students who earned the awards, but also the teachers and staff who work hard to create an environment of high expectations. "There is no substitute for showing up and working hard when it comes to success."

Below is a list of this year's academic letter winners by class.

Class of 2019 • Graduates

Gage Atwood, Cassidy Bagby, Erin Beyers, Kaylee Blanchard, Joel Branson, Rebecca Campbell, Kayla Canas, Daniel Carlson, Sarah Chahine, Peyton Crowe, David Cummins, Emmy Daniels, Liam Davis, Abigail Dunham, Avery Edwards, Nathan Emmert, Emory Ericksen, Jasmine Febus, Michael Foreman, Emilie Fox, Cole Franzen, Adam Frerichs, Rachel Gherna, Mikayla Harshbarger, Kaitlyn Hess, Zach Hill, Kalli Ingram, Kenneth Lahners, Hannah Lewis, Nathan Logan, Erinn Miller, Caroline Moore, Eve Owens, Angela Palmer, Ben Reitmeier, Adam Rose, Madison Rubin, Abigail Schlueter, Elizabeth Schluter, Samantha Schmidt, Ben Setterdahl, Jacob Shaw, Kaitlin Shoviak, Grant Siegmund, Rylee Sjuts, Brianna Suits, Maclayne Taylor, and Nathan Walden.

Class of 2020 • Seniors

Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Erin Bridgewater, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Asjah Fonner, Jaiden Freeman, Robert Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Ethan Hinrichs, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Nathan Maier, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Alivia Norem, Nolan Peacock, Taddy Pettit, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Lexi Ribbe, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Brayden Weaver, Sam Wesley, Zoey Witruk, and Jackson Wooten.

Class of 2021 • Juniors

Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, Josh Buttjer, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Nadirah Edwards, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Alexandra Frerichs, Emily Froman, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Cailer Kellenberger, Shelby Kofoot, Spencer Lahners, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Alyssa Maddock, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painter, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt, Rachel Wilson, and Logan Wolfersberger.

Class of 2022 • Sophomores

Addison Allen, Tyler Altenbaumer, Kailyn Anderson, Ella Armstrong, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Andrew Beyers, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Kennedi Burnett, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Ben Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Zella Fuqua, Avian Gerdes, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Lauren Harper, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Kelsey Martlage, Sophia McDade, Conrad Miller, Coby Miller, Elijah Mock, Jett Morris, Keaton Nolan, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach, Mackenzie Trame, Ethan Vanliew, and Taylor Wells .