The Rotary Club of Westerville, which sponsors a Student of the Month program, recognized recipients at a luncheon at Villa Milano held on Thursday, April 6. April students are Megan O’Halloran, Westerville Central High School; Kayley Joseph, Westerville North High School; Kaleb Wesson, Westerville South High School; and Kara Haywood, St. Francis DeSales High School.
The purpose of the program is twofold: to recognize outstanding students who have distinguished themselves by serving their school and to expose them to the Rotary Club and its ideal of “Service Above Self.” Students selected join Rotarians for lunch every week for a month, and have the opportunity to interact with members.
Megan O’Halloran, a junior at Westerville Central High School, holds a 4.5 grade point average (GPA). Spanish and Government are her favorite subjects of study. She is a member of the National Honor Society and Key Club, and enjoys hanging out with Special Education students. She also runs an annual neighborhood food drive. O’Halloran has not yet decided where to continue her education, but is hoping it will be “somewhere warm.”
English and Math are favorite subjects of study for Westerville North High School senior Kayley Joseph, who has earned a 3.1 GPA. She has been involved in a number of activities during her high school years, including working on the theater crew, participating in the North Leadership Summit, serving as a shopper for Caring and Sharing, and playing on golf, bowling and tennis teams. Joseph was a Girl Scout for six years and as such, volunteered in numerous community service activities including Service from the Heart, Support the Girls, Operation Buckeye, Operation Home Front and Share-Bac-a-Pack. She is also active in the fight against human trafficking. Joseph has earned a number of athletic and academic awards. She plans to study Special Education at Urbana University.
Basketball standout Kaleb Wesson, a senior at Westerville South High School, has gained recognition as Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year, Ohio’s Mr. Basketball, Ohio Capital Conference Player of the Year, AP Division I Central District Player of the Year and a first-team All-Ohio pick in Division I. The 6-foot-7, 270-pound senior center averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds and three assists per game while shooting 70.3 percent from inside the arc this past season, leading the Wildcats (19-6) to the Division I district semifinals. A First Team All-State selection and a member of the 2015-16 USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team, Wesson is ranked as the nation’s No. 75 recruit in the Class of 2017 by 247Sports. An accomplished vocalist in his school’s performance choir and a member of the Student Council, Wesson has volunteered locally at a homeless shelter and as a youth basketball coach. He has maintained a B average in the classroom, and signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball on scholarship at The Ohio State University this fall.
DeSales senior Kara Haywood likes studying English and Spanish. She has participated in a number of school activities including cheerleading, serving as Senior Class Vice President, Student Council, Student Ambassador, Go Red for Women, Run the Race, Corral for the Kids and Math Club. She enjoys competitive dance and volunteers for W.A.RM., the American Heart Association, Make-a-Wish and Christ Child. She is a member of the National Honor Society. Haywood plans to major in Marketing at the University of Kentucky.