Posted on Sun, Jun 10, 2012 : 2 p.m.
Ann Arbor Pioneer High School Top Scholars
By AnnArbor.com Staff
Ann Arbor Pioneer High School held its 2012 graduation ceremonies Thursday, June 7, 7 p.m. in the Eastern Michigan Convocation Center. The class included 389 graduates.
Parents: Elizabeth Phillips, Thomas Buchmueller
Activities and Awards: Sophie played lacrosse all four years and was on varsity junior and senior year. She also was a member and facilitator of Students Educating Each other about Diversity (SEED) at the Neutral Zone. Also, she was a student editor for the book Best American Nonrequired Reading for two years. Sophie is a National Merit Finalist, an AP Scholar, and placed third in the National French Exam her sophomore year.
Plans After Graduation: Sophie will be attending Carleton College next year.
Parents: Shih-Wen Wu, Yung-Ming Chen
Activities and Awards: Iris was a member of the National Honor Society and an AP Scholar with Distinction. She was also an active member of the Rotary Interact club; she was voted President in her senior year and also received the Junior Rotarian Award from the Rotary Club of Ann Arbor. In addition to community service, Iris is also passionate about anti-genocide activism, founding and leading the Darfur Club. In her spare time, she cooks for friends and family and plays the flute.
Plans After Graduation: Iris will be attending the University of Michigan. She plans to study history or international relations.
Parents: Andrew Chen and Linda Xu
Activities and Awards: Julia was a National Merit Finalist and Scholarship Winner, a Presidential Scholar Semifinalist, and a National AP Scholar. Julia has a four-year Varsity on the girls’ swim and dive team, and received the Academic All-American Award. She qualified for the AIME, was the AMC 10 School Winner, and placed in the Top 200 in the Michigan Math Prize Competition. Julia was Co-Founder and Co-President of the Future Problem Solving Team, President of Key Club, and an Event Head in Science Olympiad. She has done research at University of Michigan labs since her sophomore year and participated in the Southeastern Michigan Science Fair. She has volunteered in the life enrichment department at Glacier Hills Living Community since freshman year, receiving the Youth Service Award, and was a teacher’s assistant at Annhua Chinese School for one year, receiving the Outstanding Volunteer Award.
Plans After Graduation: Julia will be attending the University of Pennsylvania majoring in bioengineering.
Jack Fan
Parents: Weidong Fan and Sherry Li
Activities and Awards: Jack was a member of the Pioneer Symphony Band, the Youth Empowerment Project and a National French Exam Finalist 2010 and 2011.
Plans After Graduation: Jack plans to attend University of Michigan, Political Science.
Parents: Timothy and Hongyu Johnson
Activities and Awards: Jennifer was the vice president of the National Honor Society and a member of the National Society of High School Scholars. She was selected for the 2012 Southeastern All-Academic Team for Outstanding Academic Achievement and the Junior Rotarian Award for her leadership and community service work in the Pioneer Interact Club, of which she was vice president. She was on the field hockey team for two years and was voted co-captain of the Junior Varsity team her sophomore year. Jennifer was also a cellist in the Pioneer Symphony Orchestra, which traveled on tour to Austria and Germany in 2011.
Plans After Graduation: Jennifer will be attending the University of Michigan, majoring in mathematics.
Parents: Cindy and Chris King
Activities and Awards: Kelsey was part of the choral program at Pioneer for four years and a member of two extra-curricular ensembles. She played both field hockey and softball. Kelsey participates actively in her church youth group and has been on over 7 mission trips, nationally and internationally. Additionally, she works with the middle school aged church youth, helping plan summer programs and events.
Plans After Graduation: Kelsey will be attending Hope College in Holland, Michigan.
Parents: Songnian Li and Jie Cao
Activities and Awards: Angel was a National Merit Finalist, an AP Scholar with Distinction, and secretary of the National Honor Society. She was an event head and four-year member of the Pioneer Science Olympiad team. She also played violin in Pioneer’s Symphony Orchestra, was a member of the Orientation Guides Steering Committee, and was vice president of the AnnHua Chinese School Student Volunteer Board. Angel has volunteered and conducted research at the University of Michigan Brehm Center. Her project won the grand award at the Southeast Michigan Science Fair and advanced to the Intel International Science Fair, where it won a third place award.
Plans After Graduation: Angel will attend the University of Michigan College of Engineering and Ross School of Business.
Parents: Karen and Marty Lutz
Activities and Awards: Jamie was a member of National Honor Society. She was a National Merit Finalist and an AP Scholar with Distinction. Jamie was also captain of the varsity lacrosse team. She plays the Celtic harp and has won three national championships in the under-18 age group. She also played piano and violin. Jamie volunteers regularly at her church.
Plans After Graduation: Jamie will be attending the University of Michigan, where she received preferred admission into the architecture program at Taubman College.
Parents: Deb and Tom Pilutti
Activities and Awards: Pioneer Jack was a four-year member of the Pioneer Theatre Guild and a member of the Student Board there. He has been treasurer, head music librarian, and president of different Pioneer High School Choirs, and a four-year member of the A Cappella group the Pioneers. He spent a lot of time with the Neutral Zone Program SEED (Students Educating Each other about Diversity) and was a facilitator his senior year. He was a National Merit Scholar Finalist and an AP Scholar with Distinction. Jack also spends his summers working or volunteering at YMCA camp Al-Gon-Quian.
Plans After Graduation: Jack will be attending the University of Pennsylvania and plans to major in Environmental Sciences and Economics.
Parents: Joan Hartman and John Rothchild
Activities and Awards: Julia is a National Merit Scholar, an AP Scholar with Distinction, and a member of the National Honor Society. She is a Pioneer Concerto Competition winner on the piano, and received the National School Orchestra Leadership Award. She is Co-President of the Pioneer Symphony, in which she plays violin and viola, and a founder of the Pioneer Chamber Ensemble. She received a Gold Medal on the National Latin Exam and was named a Promising Young Writer by the National Council of Teachers of English. Her favorite summer activities have included attending music camps, volunteering at an archaeological dig, studying Italian, and backpacking in the mountains.
Plans After Graduation: Julia will attend Yale University in the fall.
Parents: Michael and Deborah Stevens
Activities and Awards: Caleb played football for Pioneer for four years, and was selected as a member of the All State Academic First Team his senior year. He also played rugby for Washtenaw Rugby Football Club, where he was the most improved player his junior year. Caleb was a National Merit Finalist, a Presidential Scholar candidate, an AP Scholar with Distinction, and a member of the SEC All Academic Team. He enjoyed helping out as a peer mediator at Pioneer and a tutor on the football team.
Plans After Graduation: Caleb will attend the United States Military Academy, and plans to study nuclear engineering.
Parents: Shengzhuang Tang and Mingchuan Huang Activities and Awards: Aside from her involvement with several organizations, Aoxue’s favorite activities include blogging about five-ingredient recipes, reading biographies of famous people, and listening to Korean pop music. Having been a National Merit Scholar and an AP Scholar, she is now honored to be a Top Scholar.
Plans After Graduation: Aoxue will attend Stanford University and study abroad in Asia.
Parents: Ke Wan and Di Jiang
Activities and Awards: Sherry was a member of the National Honor Society and was a National Merit Finalist. She was a member of the varsity track & field team and was the 2012 Michigan Indoor Triple Jump State Champion. She won 1st place in the 2012 Saul Bell Emerging Artist Competition (National Jewelry Competition), “Best of Show in Metals” in the 2012 National High School Juried Metals Exhibition, and 1st place in Jewelry in the 2012 Ann Arbor Potential Show. Sherry volunteered in an art class at AnHua Chinese School and worked in the University of Michigan School of Dentistry. Sherry also has a level X certification in piano and was the Music Manager for “Loreleis,” an extra-curricular a cappella group.
Plans After Graduation: Sherry will be attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Parents: Kim and Sue Winick
Activities and Awards: Jacob drove the Pioneer electric vehicle at MIS where the Pioneer Wagoneers beat 12 teams to win the Chairman’s Trophy. He was selected by GLERL for their Partners in Excellence science internship. He was awarded the Great Lakes JV-Prep Hockey Scholarship and is a Level 3 hockey referee. He is a member of the National Honor Society and is an AP Scholar with Distinction. He is an attackman on the Pioneer Varsity Lacrosse team and played violin in the Michigan Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Pioneer Symphony Orchestra. He is proud of his participation in Ann Arbor Teens for Kids where he was a volunteer in the community and designed the website (aatfk.org). He also was a coach for the Ann Arbor Rockets, a youth hockey team empowering children with disabilities.
Plans After Graduation: Jacob will be attending the University of Michigan, majoring in electrical engineering.