Jason Ai

F.W. Buchholz High School

"There are many students gifted in academics; Jason Ai is no different, having won accolades in math, science, and writing contests. He has a comfortable niche at the top of the class as well as principal oboe of the county orchestra; his academic and extracurricular life is essentially perfect. Despite this, he still exerts himself by choosing to give back to his community and to share his experiences with children who initially weren't interested in math and science. During the past school year, he traveled to middle schools over a half hour away to tutor them in math and science and helped students win awards in Math Counts, Mu Alpha Theta, and Science Bowl. This summer, to continue these efforts, he created a summer camp focused on competitive math and getting kids interested in mathematics. In order to run the camp, he spends many hours writing problems and devising curricula that help the students think creatively in order to tackle the problems posed by AMC and AIME tests. A common quote states that character can judged through how a person treats those who can do nothing for him; Jason's selfless dedication to his community reveals a character worthy of Shmooperstar."

Steven Gregory

Duanesburg Central School District

"Steven is outstanding. He took on an extremely challenging year, taking multiple AP classes, presenting to our board of education, overcoming physical injury. In large part because of Shmoop, Steven's writing improved dramatically, and he has found much confidence and pride in his own voice. I am proud of him, and I think that his ability to communicate his own voice and the merit of what he has to say make him worthy of the Shmooperstar award."

Lauren Ashley Guzman

Hanna High School

Lauren has excelled in academics her own life, but her Shmooperstarness goes well beyond that. She's been dancing since the age of three and absolutely loves to perform. "What is probably most noteworthy about Lauren, though, is her absolute devotion to her volunteer work." Here's a quick peek at what she's done:

• In elementary school, she started a recycling program at school. (Uh, we couldn't even spell recycling when we were 7.) She even presented the project at a district board meeting and convinced them to adopt it the following year.


• As president of her middle school, she kept the volunteering going, including keeping up a beautiful garden on campus.


• And yes, she's president of her high school class, too. She volunteers in all sorts of ways: spearheading a schoolwide effort to participate in Locks of Love, leading her school to victory in a recycling contest, and volunteering at her church and local soup kitchen.

"Lauren is honestly such a selfless soul!" Now that's a Shmooperstar.

Corey Hale

Ohio County Middle School

"Awesomeness does not begin to describe Corey Hale. As a 7th grader, he expressed the maturity, compassion, academic know-how, and powerful work ethic normally, yet very rarely seen in much older students. Walking into my language arts classroom on August 9, 2013, Corey's bright eyes, attentiveness to class, and respect for others even from the beginning told me what a great character he was! After speaking with his parents, I learned that in fourth grade Corey had set a goal to become valedictorian and had always placed high importance on academics, scholarly clubs, and character development. He is involved in several student involvement programs, and he even reaches out to students who are bullied. Above all other students, the entire student body loves Corey, just because of who he is and how he treats each person for who they are. This quality is very rare in society—much less in a middle school."

Gillian Hardy

Cantua High School

"Gillian handled advanced math, AP online history, Honors English, and so much more this year. While she struggled, she kept her head above water and was not only able to maintain her GPA, but she even raised it. She did it all while playing soccer, being in the school orchestra, and helping out at activities at her church each week. She even spent two weeks in the summer to participate as a youth leader in a church camp for under-privileged children in our local area. She’s talented in so many ways, yet she doesn't think she’s anything special. In my book, that makes her very special."

Being awesome is one thing. Being awesome and humble? That's an accomplishment.

Leonardo Kim

Chaminade College Preparatory

"Leo is one of the most genuinely kind people I've ever had the blessing to meet. He’s a bright soul who does his best to spend his life cheering up others, and at the same time, he can prioritize his personal life so well that he can maintain a nearly perfect GPA, while being the captain of the Debate Team, Model UN, and working on the board of multiple admissions boards at school. Leo has been given the title of the President's Community Service Award, and has been doing it since he was in the second grade, spending three days a week and twelve hours doing his best to alleviate poor communities in our area. He's the absolute best."

Chana Devora Levine

Yeshiva of Greater Washington

"Chana Devora graduated at the top of her class and excelled in every single class. She was her school's valedictorian, while also being the President of her school's Knitting and Crocheting club (all projects benefit cancer patients), backstage coordinator of the annual production, participant in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Holiday Lecture Seminar, founder and leader of her community's Bnos chapter (Bnos is a nationwide religious program that provides activities on the weekends and during the year), and volunteered her time at her school's annual carnival for children with disabilities and their families. She has been a diligent worker, blending hard work and persistence in every class. She truly deserves this honor."

Ezequiel Lozano, Jr.

Lopez High School

"Ezequiel had been slacking off in my class and was ready to give up even attempting to pass. I told him that instead of trying to make up weeks of missed or sub standard exercises he could go on Shmoop and do enough outside exercises to pass my class. He ended up getting the most shmoints of anyone in my class. He passed my class and hopefully the AP Language and Composition exam. I am very proud of his dedication to Shmoop."

We're happy to help, Ezequiel, but that's all you.

Lourdes Sarmiento Martinez

Escondido High School

Feel like you're busy? Take a look at Lourdes' schedule.

• 4.5 GPA
• Maintained a job working 3-4 days each week for a year
• Officer for MEChA and CSF
• Member of prestigious National Honor Society
• Student Ambassador
• Interned 75+ hours

Faith Moore

East Central High School, c/o 2014

Faith is a regular academic rockstar. She graduated third in her class (out of 640—yowza), and got straight A's in all of her AP classes. Her sophomore and junior year AP scores earned her the title of AP Scholar with Distinction, and she was president of the National Honor Society and the National Beta Club. Oh, and how about the fact that she was a member of the second place regional Literary Criticism team and a member of the French club?

Whew.

Vennela Pothugunta

Cinco Ranch High School

Vennela started high school in a new district, but she kicked high school's butt, becoming a leader in her school and inspiring others. Her biggest accomplishment was her work with her school’s chapter of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA). She was president (NBD), and she helped grow the chapter to become the 10th biggest in the nation with 320 members. Here's her FBLA resume:

• Qualified for Nationals every year
• Was elected as state officer
• Officer meetings, conference calls, general meetings, volunteering events, FBLA school store, financial reports...

Okay, we'll stop now. Vennela believes in herself and we're pretty sure everyone else does, too.

Julissa Rodriguez

IDEA Mission College Preparatory

"This past school year, [Julissa] was able to balance so many extracurricular and personal things, all while doing exceptionally well in school with regards to her grades. Julissa is an example of the ideal student. She is the Logistical Director for Model United Nations, the Parliamentarian for National Honor Society, the Treasurer for Theater Club, and the Public Relations Officer for Yearbook Club. As if this isn't amazing enough, Julissa also received an award for her academic achievement and 3.71/4.0 Grade Point Average. For her entire high school career, she held two jobs in order to help me and her sisters economically. Aside from this, Julissa has been an active member of the community and has done things such as volunteering multiple times as an actress at the local church plays, volunteering at a homeless shelter, and volunteering at the Rio Grande Valley Food Bank. Julissa is a very involved student in every single way possible. She looks to the future with a ready mindset and wishes to make herself proud. Ultimately, Julissa deserves to be titled the #1 Shmooper because of her impressive academic record and heart of gold."

Chris Ullrich

Cy-Fair High School

Chris has been described as articulate, charismatic, musical, goofy, and...lots of other stuff. Here's a note from a doting teacher:

"Seriously, Chris was such a joy to work with in class. I could always count on him to embrace many of our zaniest ideas with verve and elan. He prosecuted Andrew Jackson wholeheartedly, embodied Theodore Roosevelt with Teddy's own bullish personality, and created a music video about the moon landing to the tune of 'Sweet Caroline' entitled 'Leave Earth Behind.' He is the personification of the Shmoop attitude."

Monica Valenzuela

Mar Vista High School, c/o 2014

Some people exist to inspire greatness. Take Monica Valenzuela, for example. She aced her AP classes while providing over 400 hours of community service through church and club activities, including her role as president of the Environmental Club and Teacher Assistant for the Adventurer's Club. And why'd she do it? To "set an example for the future generations."

Hear that, future generations? Follow Monica's lead.

Micalah Yovanovich

Norton High School

Here's something: Micalah cares more about learning than she does about grades.

Yup, you read that right.

Sure, she's smart, but she also works like crazy. Here's what her teachers said: "She will knock herself out for a 15-point project or a 150-point project. She takes pride in her work and wants to be the best. I introduced her to Shmoop when she was struggling with the novel 1984. Her goal wasn't just to get a good grade on the quizzes and papers, but to actually understand the book."

We could all learn a thing or two from this gal.

Melanie Yu

Glen A. Wilson High School

Melanie was nominated by her little sister, which we think speaks wonders given what Shmoop's siblings thought of them in high school. Here's what she said:

"My sister is really fantastic. She is the president of the Pencils of Promise club, the VP of the American Red Cross club, the VP of the California Scholarship Federation club, the treasurer of Key Club, and the VP of Promoting Animal Welfare club at Glen A. Wilson High School. She's also the student adviser of the Formosa Association of Student Cultural Ambassadors (FASCA). She was nominated as the student of the year for 2013-2014 too! Even though she has so many clubs, she still has straight A’s! I'm really proud of her. :D She's going to test for her poom belt (red-black belt) for taekwondo soon, which is just one belt away from black! My sister doesn't just do these awesome things, she also makes videos with me on our YouTube channel MelSimanie!"

And...we're out of breath just thinking of everything Melanie does in a given day.