Mathew Philip
Lincoln Park High School
Parents: Poothakallil and Molly Philip. Philip scored a perfect 1600 on the Scholastic Aptitude Test, but he wants to be known for his community service and love of books. “Service is the rent one pays to live on the earth; it is not something we do in our free time, but the very essence of life,” he said. As president of the Christian Youth Society affiliated with 12 churches and the service-oriented Key Club, Philip has tried to instill “a genuine love of making a difference in the hearts of its members.” To expand his mind, he likes to read books with a science theme, including “The Flow,” by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,” by Thomas Kuhn. He ranks fourth in a class of 305.
Rebecca Connie
Morgan Park High School
Parent: Dorothy Connie. “What do you want, a super hero, a freak? My God, we’re only 17!” That’s how Connie responded in her essay written to answer the charges leveled against last year’s All-State Academic Team in a letter that appeared in the Chicago Tribune’s Voice of the People column claiming the winners showed no intellectual passion. She countered that she has a passion for life and a need to express herself through dancing and acting. Connie’s best accomplishment was working with her creative writing class on a book of stories about real life to encourage pride and self-respect among poverty-level children. She ranks first in a class of 372. SAT: 1220.
Kevin Thomas
Brother Rice High School
Parents: Joseph and Donnarose Thomas. On a family trip to Ireland last summer, Thomas could not set aside his love for reading. “My dad had bought a book titled `Fermat’s Last Theorem,’ a math book, to read on the plane, but there I sat in a pub in Kilarney unable to put the book down,” he said. “Then, three days later in an antique bookstore in Dublin, I picked up a book by the philosopher Bertrand Russell entitled `The Problems of Philosophy,’ a book that I still keep next to my bed.” Thomas developed the school’s Web site and has been captain of the tennis, swimming and math teams. He ranks first in a class of 325. ACT: 34.
Cheryl Carandang
Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School
Parents: Florencio and Irene Carandang. Carandang, with “an insatiable appetite to learn,” likes to include education outside the classroom, such as in the Writing and Science Clubs. Activities include “analyzing Shakespeare to learn the intricacies of the sonnet, or integrating all areas of science to construct a Rube Goldberg machine,” she said. Carandang wants to become a doctor and is gaining experience by volunteering in Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn and working in the Lemont Nursing Home. She was one of the first students named a minister of care by the Archdiocese of Chicago. An Orland Park resident, she is the top student in a class of 476. SAT: 1460.
Richard Kim
Young Magnet High School
Parents: Soon Sung and Janice Kim. An intellectual eye-opener for Kim was last year’s astronomy class at Stanford University’s Summer College for High School Students. Now the sky for him is not just “a dark expanse filled with static stars,” but “colossal nebulae and galaxies, ravenous black holes, extrasolar planets, blazing pulsars and perhaps even a place where life exists elsewhere.” Focusing on “the welfare of others” is his top achievement. “Through projects such as the National Runaway Switchboard or the Greater Chicago Food Depository, my work as Key Club president put my organizational skills and responsibility to the test and into action,” Kim said. He ranks first in a class of 456. SAT: 1520.
Frank Groshek
St. Patrick High School
Parents: Steve and Joanne Groshek. “I write poetry because it serves as an outlet to release my passions, desires, fears and triumphs that come from the soul,” Groshek said. He is working on an independent study course in neuroanatomy and neurophysiology at the University of Illinois Hospital. Groshek has expanded his passion for new ideas by reading books ranging from Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” to Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s “Crime and Punishment.” He is captain of the basketball team and was a regional and sectional winner in the last two years in the three-point shooting contest. Groshek ranks third in a class of 188. ACT: 30.
Nicholas Walker
Kenwood Academy
Parents: Nicholas and Sandra Walker. Walker’s best achievement was completing the three-year summer program for exceptional minority students at Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass. The college-level courses required studying four hours a night, six days a week. Walker has been accepted by Harvard University, noting the renowned campus takes 2,000 freshmen each year from a pool including 500 students with perfect 1600s on the SAT and 50 with a perfect 36 on the ACT. He is only three merit badges away from attaining the top Boy Scout rank of Eagle Scout. Walker is reading for pleasure at a pace of six books a month. “I read car magazines every week,” he said. “I can tell you anything about any car made in the last 10 years.” He ranks second in a class of 332. SAT: 1330.
Moira Heiges
St. Ignatius College Prep
Parents: Michael and Cecelia Heiges. “Sports are important for girls,” said Heiges, a LaGrange resident. She is co-captain of the track and cross-country teams and is coaching a volleyball team of 8th-grade girls. “I do these things because when I was little, my mom gave me running shoes instead of Barbie dolls,” she said. Heiges likes to give speeches on the successes and shortcomings of Title 9, the federal law prohibiting gender discrimination in education. She is proud to be on the Student Pastoral Ministry team planning all-school liturgies, prayer services and reconciliation services. She ranks fifth in a class of 322. SAT: 1520.
Bindi Thakkar
Bogan Computer Technical High School
Parents: Nutan and Narhari Thakkar. For Thakkar, her best achievement is getting “through high school without having to succumb to peer pressure and having become a well-rounded individual through academics, extracurricular activities and community organizations.” She has won 14 medals in academic decathlon competition. Her activities include Math Team, Student Council, Computer and Technology Club, Science Club, Radio Club, Poetry Club, Latin Club, Key Club and Junior Achievement. She ranks first in a class of 372. ACT: 29.
