The Rotary Club of Westerville, which sponsors a Student of the Month program, recognized recipients at a luncheon at Villa Milano held on Thursday, March 14. March students are Briana McNeal, Westerville Central High School; Philip Alston, Westerville North High School; Kent Howell, Westerville South High School; and Angelo Ricci, St. Francis DeSales High School.
The purpose of the program is twofold: to recognize outstanding pupils 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.
Briana McNeal is a senior at Westerville Central High School, where she holds a 5.1250 grade point average (GPA). Calculus and Physics are her favorite subjects of study. She is a member of the National Honor Society and plays violin and harp in the Pit Orchestra. She has earned a number of academic honors, is an AP Scholar with Distinction, a National Merit Commended Scholar, and ranks in the Academic Varsity Top 10. She is engaged in a seven-week fundraising campaign for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. McNeal is studying Chemical Engineering in the Engineering Honors Program at The Ohio State University, where she plans to work on renewable energy and resource research.
Westerville North’s Philip Alston, a senior, describes himself as smart, athletic and hardworking. He has earned a 4.1 GPA, and History is his favorite subject. He is on the basketball and track team. He is also active in his church, where he works with children in Sunday School, helps in the kitchen, and assists with the soundboard. He also volunteers at the Byron Saunders Foundation and the Mid-Ohio Food Bank. Alston has not yet decided where he will attend college, but he has received multiple scholarship offers to play basketball at the collegiate level.
Math and Physics are favorite subjects of study for Westerville South senior Kent Howell. He holds a 4.4 GPA. He is involved in theatre and is a member of the National Honor Society. Howell is a sail instructor at the Hoover Sailing Club. He has earned three academic letters and one varsity lacrosse letter. He plans to pursue computer science in college.
Angelo Ricci has earned a 4.0 GPA at DeSales, where he enjoys studying Accounting and Physics. This senior is a member of the National Honor Society and has earned Academic All-Ohio status. Ricci participates in track and field, and serves as a volunteer coach at St. Mathias. He plans to study Economics at Denison University.