280 applied last fall for a spot in ‘America’s Best High School’
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (March 20, 2013) – The Carol Martin Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science in Kentucky has selected 72 students for its Class of 2015.
In the fall, approximately 280 Kentucky sophomores started the application process with 180 students qualifying for review. Applicants were evaluated based on ACT/SAT scores, high school grades, awards, extracurricular activities, responses to essay questions and letters of recommendation. Last month, 100 candidates were invited to interview with academy staff and community leaders from across Kentucky.
“In our seventh year of recruiting, we continue to see an incredible depth of outstanding students who apply,” said Tim Gott, director of the Gatton Academy. “The process to choose only 72 students was more challenging than ever before. This is certainly a powerful acknowledgement of the caliber of Kentucky’s students.”
The selected students scored an average composite of 30.2 on the ACT and 29.2 on the math portion of the exam. The highest possible score is a 36.
“The academic success of the Gatton Academy’s Class of 2015 is a testament to the work of educators and school districts from across the commonwealth,” said Chad Phillips, the academy’s assistant director of admissions and external relations. “We look forward to our continued partnership with school districts from across the state to continue to meet the educational, emotional and social needs of high-ability youth.”
The incoming class includes students from the following counties: Allen, Ballard, Barren, Boone, Boyle, Breathitt, Breckinridge, Calloway, Carlisle, Carter, Christian, Clark, Daviess, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Hardin, Harrison, Henderson, Hickman, Hopkins, Jackson, Jefferson, Kenton, Knox, Laurel, Lee, Lincoln, Marshall, Mason, McCracken, Muhlenberg, Nelson, Ohio, Oldham, Pendleton, Pike, Rowan, Scott, Shelby, Spencer, Simpson, Todd and Warren.
This year, four counties had students admitted to the Gatton Academy for the first time: Ballard, Hickman, Jackson and Lee. To date, the Gatton Academy has admitted students from 110 of Kentucky’s 120 counties.
The goal of the Gatton Academy is to enable Kentucky’s exceptional young scientists and mathematicians to learn in an environment that offers advanced educational opportunities, preparing them for leadership roles in Kentucky. The academy assists in preparing Kentucky to compete in a knowledge-based economy by increasing the number of scientists and engineers who live and work in the state.
Students will complete their junior and senior years of high school living in Schneider Hall and taking courses offered by Western Kentucky University. At the end of their two-year course of study, they will graduate from high school and have earned at least 60 college credit hours.
The academy provides a rich living and learning environment designed specifically for academically talented adolescent students that features clubs, organizations and community service. Additionally, students are able to participate in advanced research with WKU faculty members. Research conducted during students’ time at the Gatton Academy has been honored in the nationally competitive Siemens Competition, Intel Science Talent Search, Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program, and the Department of Defense Science, Math, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship Program. The majority of Gatton Academy students also participate in a study abroad or global learning experience in locations such as Costa Rica, Italy, Greece, England, China or Morocco.
The Gatton Academy is Kentucky’s only state-supported, residential program for high school students with interests in advanced science and math careers and one of only fifteen such programs in the nation. In 2012, Newsweek named the Gatton Academy the nation’s top public high school.
Students selected for the Gatton Academy Class of 2015 are:
Allen County: Jackeline Orozco Curz, a student from Scottsville whose parent is Luis Chavez.
Ballard County: Katie Allen, a student from Kevil whose parents are Casey and Teri Allen.
Barren County: Kelly Lynch, a student from Glasgow whose parents are Jason and Michelle Lynch.
Boone County: Anna Braun, a student from Union whose parents are David and Pamela Braun; Allyson King, a student from Florence whose parents are Ron and Stacey King; Rena Ryumae, a student from Union whose parents are Kyong and Masaru Ryumae.
Boyle County: Rachel Cook, a student from Perryville whose parents are Paul and Gail Cook.
Breathitt County: Hailey O’Hair, a student from Breathitt County whose parents are Angel Stevens and Jay O’Hair;Sarah Yount, a student from Jackson whose parents are Jim and Martha Yount.
Breckinridge County: James Meeks, a student from Custer whose parents are Rodney and Janet Meeks; Danielle Wilson, a student from Custer whose parents are Allen and Regina Wilson.
Calloway County: Phoebe Zimmerer, a student from Dexter whose parents are Edmund and Mary Beth Zimmerer.
Carlisle County: Jenna Willett, a student from Fancy Farm whose parents are Bobby and Sabrina Willett.
Carter County: Dana Biechele-Speziale, a student from Grayson whose parents are Jennifer Biechele and Sherri Speziale.
Christian County: Lydia Buzzard, a student from Hopkinsville whose parents are Dale and Phuong Buzzard; Vir Patel, a student from Hopkinsville whose parents are Deepak and Neema Patel.
Clark County: Shelbi Broeking, a student from Winchester whose parents are Lance and Sherri Broeking; David Chamberlain, a student from Winchester whose parents are Jeff and Tracy Hubbard.
Daviess County: Samuel Booth, a student from Owensboro whose parents are Thomas and Robin Booth; Meredith Bickett, a student from Owensboro whose parents are Gary and Karen Bickett; Peter Kaminski, a student from Owensboro whose parents are Chris and Jennifer Kaminski; Melissa Murphy, a student from Owensboro whose parents are Phillip and Melinda Murphy.
Fayette County: Taha Husain, a student from Lexington whose parents are Tauhid and Razia Husain; Dimitri Leggas, a student from Lexington whose parents are Mark and Suzanne Leggas; John Meyers III, a student from Lexington whose parents are Diana Robertson and John and Sarah Meyers; William Walters, a student from Lexington whose parents are John and Billie Walters.
Franklin County: Melissa Anderson, a student from Frankfort whose parents are Cynthia and Leslie Anderson.
Gallatin County: Luke Samuel, a student from Sparta whose parents are Dale and Kim Samuel.
Hardin County: Justin Bunch, a student from Elizabethtown whose parents are Gerlinde and Mark Bunch.
Harrison County: Augustus Madsen, a student from Cynthiana whose parents are Rick and Rachel Lyons and Andrew and Dawson Madsen.
Henderson County: India Blasser, a student from Henderson whose parents are Micheal and Phyllis Blasser; Anna Mayo, a student from Henderson whose parents are Allen and Judi Mayo.
Hickman County: Erika Stairs, a student from Clinton whose parents are Michael and Lori Stairs.
Hopkins County: Paige Kington, a student from Manitou whose parents are Barry and Lana Kington; Josh Stewart, a student from Hanson whose parents are John and Pam Stewart.
Jackson County: Kathryn Price, a student from Annville whose parents are Judy Pennington-Price and E. Austin Price.
Jefferson County: Cameron Hubbard, a student from Louisville whose parents are Sandra and Mac Hubbard.
Knox County: Mollie Pope, a student from Barbourville whose parents are David and Victoria Pope.
Laurel County: NaKeya Owens, a student from London whose parents are Kevin and Beth Owens.
Lee County: Micheal Evans, a student from Beattyville whose parents are Jimmy and Roxanne Evans.
Lincoln County: Brian Carlson, a student from Stanford whose parents are Jason and Tish Griffitts.
Mason County: Courtney George, a student from Maysville whose parents are Sean and Nicole George.
Marshall County: Paul Hudson, a student from Benton whose parents are Rocky and Mary Beth Hudson.
McCracken County: Erin Burba, a student from Paducah whose parents are Patrick Burba and Kate Senn; Milan Doan, a student from Paducah whose parents are Minh and Shih-Fen Doan; Sarah Herricks, a student from Paducah whose parents are Dennis and Jennifer Herricks.
Muhlenberg County: Andrew Brown, a student from Central City whose parents are Paula and Kevin Brown.
Nelson County: Christian Simms, a student from Bardstown whose parents are Jeanne and Dennis Simms.
Ohio County: Noah Maikranz, a student from Beaver Dam whose parents are Kent and Tara Maikranz.
Oldham County: Bradford Hull, a student from Crestwood whose parents are Bradford and Jennifer Hull; Logan Houchens, a student from Crestwood whose parents are parents are Rob and Natalie Houchens; Kelly McKenna, a student from Crestwood whose parents are Mary and Dan McKenna; Lindsay Walton, a student from Goshen whose parents are Ed and Ruth Walton.
Pendleton County: Ian West, a student from Butler whose parents are David and Andrea West.
Pike County: Micheal Blankenship, a student from Stopover whose parents are Michael Blankenship and Dan and Sabrina Coleman.
Rowan County: Morgan Blair, a student from Morehead whose parents are Angela Fultz and the late Timothy Blair.
Scott County: Jonathan Patterson, a student from Georgetown whose parents are Daniel and Janet Patterson.
Simpson County: Kain Kotoucek, a student from Franklin whose parents are Kelly Cardwell and Kristoffer Kotoucek;Blake Sutton, a student from Franklin whose parents are Amy Sutton and Tomas Williams.
Shelby County: Abigail Boone, a student from Simpsonville whose parents are Austin Boone and Shelley Taylor.
Spencer County: Noah Williamson, a student from Taylorsville whose parents are Jay and Marie Williamson.
Todd County: Ian Canedo-Muzevic, a student from Guthrie whose parents are Marcelo and Vida Canedo; Elizabeth Warren, a student from Elkton whose parents are Melvin and Janeil Warren.
Warren County: Julia Gensheimer, a student from Bowling Green whose parents are Jerry and Debra Gensheimer;Benjamin Guthrie, a student from Bowling Green whose parents are Chris and Nicole Guthrie; Elizaveta Khenner, a student from Bowling Green whose parents are Mikhail Khenner and Ekaterina Myakshina; Saralinda Schell, a student from Bowling Green whose parents are J. Krist Schell and Dana Bradley; Cameron Richards, a student from Bowling Green whose parent is Rebecca Richards; Valerie Richmond, a student from Bowling Green whose parent is Tom Richmond; Ananya Sharma, a student from Bowling Green whose parents are Nilesh and Vibha Sharma; Jack Wassom, a student from Bowling Green whose parents are Melissa and Greg Wassom.
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