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Meet Who’s Who in the class of ’24

From athletes to academics, from Fine Arts majors to community servants, here are some of the most involved, accomplished seniors from this past year

Shield staff senior recognition squad

June 1, 2024

Among the 2024 Who's Who are these eight graduates: Top row: Meredith Grotevant, Hazel Reddy, Sophie Leung-Lieu, David Herring. Bottom row: Lanie Sepehri, Malena Linse, Alice Scott and Keegan Sarwate.

Gallery • 2 Photos

Naomi Di-Capua, Beatrick Lozach, Sophia Manos, Maggie Mass, Henry McDaniel, Hazel Reddy and Francie Wilhelm

Among the 2024 Who’s Who are these eight graduates: Top row: Meredith Grotevant, Hazel Reddy, Sophie Leung-Lieu, David Herring. Bottom row: Lanie Sepehri, Malena Linse, Alice Scott and Keegan Sarwate.

The Shield staff is pleased to announce the 2024 Who’s Who winners and to share their varied and invaluable impacts on the McCallum community on our website. These 16 outstanding contributors to the Class of 2024 and to the larger school community led their peers in sports, fine arts, academic and community service pursuits, and committed their time and energy into bettering a campus that they love.

It is a longstanding McCallum tradition that the student who earns the most points on their application is designated as the torchbearer for their graduating class. Congratulations to Hazel Reddy for being the torchbearer for the exceptional Class of 2024.

Who’s Who 2024

Hazel Reddy, torchbearer

“Introspection” by Reddy is about prioritizing working on yourself. “I depicted a group huddle scene between three self portraits to represent this,” Reddy said. The piece “introspection” is a colored pencil drawing with an acrylic paint background. Reddy used the same shade of blue for the background of many of her pieces because the serene color contrasts with the dramatic themes of the imagery. “I am really happy with how the soft colors came together for this piece,” Reddy said. Caption by Mira Patel. (Hazel Reddy)

VISUAL ARTS MAJOR (9-12): Fine Arts Academy ambassador, 12; VASE All-Region (three total), 9, 10; VASE All-State (two total), 11; Regional Scholastic Art and Writing Honorable Mention Portfolio, 12; Regional Scholastic Art and Writing Silver Key (four total), 10-12;
Regional Scholastic Art and Writing Gold Key (five total), 11-12; Regional Scholastic Art and Writing Gold Key Portfolio, 12; Scholastic Art and Writing American Visions Award Nominee, (two total), 11. NATIONAL ART HONOR SOCIETY (10-12): Art selected to be featured in the National Art Honor Society Juried Exhibition; Junior Officer, 11; Senior Officer, 12. SCIENCE NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12): Officer, 12. MATH CENTER (11-12): Co-president, 12. UIL ACADEMICS (11-12): Number Sense Team Captain, 12. 2023 District 24-5A Academic Meet, Third Place, Number Sense; Fourth Place, Mathematics; 11. 2024 UIL DISTRICT 24-5A Academic Meet, Seventh Place, Number Sense; Fourth Place, Mathematics; 12.

Jaella Brush

Senior Jaella Brush performs “Meet the Plastics,” a piece from the musical Mean Girls. Brush went into cabaret with a mission in mind. “Going into cabaret I was excited to be more involved in the production and to show people that choir’s not just about singing classic choral music,” Brush said. The trio Brush performed in was a long-awaited partnership. “I was thrilled to get to work with and perform with two of my best friends,” Brush said. “We’ve always known we wanted to do a trio song together our senior year, so it was exciting to finally make it happen.” Brush gave this Cabaret her all because it was her last one. She wound up very happy with the performance. “I definitely committed to Cabaret,” Brush said. “I put in a lot of time and effort into the show. This being my final Cabaret, I wanted to make it count, and I think the performances went as well as one could hope for.” While some elements of the performance were very well-rehearsed, others could have used some more work. “I think it could have been better if I had spent a little more time on the vocals, as silly as that seems,” Brush said. “There was so much energy put into the choreography and theatrics of it all that sometimes the vocal energy was lost.” Other challenges this trip faced was picking out a song they felt was fitting. “Choosing the song was a tough process for me and my friends,” Brush said. “We knew we wanted to do a trio song together, but it was hard to find a song that matched our energy and dynamic as a group. We settled on Mean Girls because it’s such a fun [musical], and the whole idea of us portraying the iconic trio was exciting to explore. Plus, everyone loves Mean Girls.” Everyone in the group was good with choreography, so it was relatively quick process to put the performance together. “Practice for ‘Meet the Plastics’ specifically didn’t take too long,” Brush said. “We all are pretty good about getting the job done when it comes to choreography because we helped choreograph five numbers in the show. We probably spent a total of three to four hours choreographing and rehearsing.” While Cabaret may have its down moments, Brush had a good experience overall. “Even through the stress and pressure of being so involved in the show, I had a good time participating in Cabaret this year,” Brush said. “Getting to spend time working with some of my favorite people to put on this show was really sweet.” Caption by Shila Gill. (Francesca Dietz)

CHORAL STUDIES MAJOR (9-12). STUDENT COUNCIL (11): Vice President, 11. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12). KEY CLUB (11-12). PHILOSOPHY CLUB (11-12): President. BADMINTON CLUB (11-12): Secretary. MUSICAL THEATRE (10-11).

Naomi Di-Capua

SENIOR SOLO: Senior Naomi Di-Capua sings “Losing my Mind” from the musical “Follies” during a solo performance. Because she is not planning to pursue music in college, Di-Capua felt the need to go all out and audition for a solo. Out of over 60 auditions for solos, duets and small groups, only 17 made it into the show, one of which was Di-Capua. “It was really rewarding to know that I made it past auditions,” Di-Capua said. Auditioning was just the first step for Di-capua, though. She still had to perform in front of a large audience–for multiple nights–which came with its own difficulties. “Just getting up on stage and performing was a huge accomplishment for me because I have struggled with performance anxiety for a while,” she said. “So walking away from it I’m just really proud I was able to overcome something that I had previously struggled with.” Di-Capua’s struggle with stage fright wasn’t the only problem she came across; she also had to alter her song of choice to fit her vocal range. The song, typically sung by altos, was not going to work for her; a soprano one. To combat this issue, she had to sing the song in a completely different key. “The song is typically sung by older, alto-y, musical-theater singers, which is definitely not me,” Di-Capua said. “So honestly the hardest part of the whole process was transposing it into a higher key while managing the warmth of the piece.” Caption by JoJo Barnard. (Francesca Dietz)

CHOIR (9-12): 2023 UIL Solo and Ensemble Contest, Solo received a score of 2; 2024 UIL Solo and Ensemble Contest, Solo received a score of 1; Chamber choir class representative, 12; FINE ARTS ACADEMY (9-12): Choir ambassador, 11-12. NEWSPAPER (9-12): Co-Social Media Managing Editor, 11; Social Media Managing Editor, 12. Awards: All-State Journalist, 2023; WRKxFMLY Award of Excellence, 2021; WRKxFMLY Honorable Mention, 2021; Interscholastic Press League Conference (ILPC) Individual Award, Honorable Mention, Student Life Feature Story, 2022; Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE) Best in Texas Contest, Superior, Opinion Page Design; Superior, Entertainment Review; Honorable Mention, Sports Action Photo, 2022; Southern Interscholastic Press League (SIPA) Best Writing Contest, First Place, Yearbook Community Copy, 2022; Fall National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) Clips & Clicks Contest, Second Place, Newspaper Page/Spread Design, 2022; Southern Interscholastic Press League Best Visuals Contest, First Place, Newsmagazine Feature Package; Third Place, Social Media Portfolio, 2023; Spring National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) Clips & Clicks Contest, Honorable Mention, Sports Photo, 2023; Interscholastic Press League Conference (ILPC) Individual Achievement Award, Second Place, Entertainment Photo; Third Place, Entertainment Review; Third Place, Feature Spread Design, 2023; Interscholastic Press League Conference (ILPC) Summer Workshop, Award of Excellence, Advanced Feature Photo ; Award of Excellence, Outstanding Advanced Photo Story, 2023; Quill and Scroll Writing, Photography and Multimedia Contest, Honorable Mention, Sports Reaction Photo, 2023; Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE) Best in Texas Contest, Superior, Sports Feature Story; Superior, Entertainment Review; Excellent, Photo Essay Page; Excellent, Photo Essay Page; Honorable Mention, In-Depth News/Feature Package; Honorable Mention, Feature Story; Honorable Mention, Sports Feature Photo, 2023; Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE) Best in Texas Contest, Excellent, Staff Editorial; Excellent, Sports Action Photo; Honorable Mention, Photo Portfolio, 2024. Southern Interscholastic Press League (SIPA) Best Visuals Contest, First Place, Social Media Portfolio; Second Place, Photo Story; Second Place, Creative Group Shot; Third Place, Opinion Package, 2024. Interscholastic Press League Conference (ILPC) Individual Achievement Awards, First Place, Social Media Story; Second Place, Portrait; Honorable Mention, Portrait, 2024. Best of SNO Awards: “Shooting for the stars and stripes,” 2024. “‘Midnights’ proves Taylor Swift is true ‘Mastermind,’” 2022. “Bob Bedard’s little acts of kindness make big impact,” 2022; “‘No Time To Die’ a sad send-off for Daniel Craig,” 2021; “For one Austin neighborhood, community during a pandemic began with a song… or two,” 2021. KEY CLUB (11-12): Vice President, 12. HISTORY CENTER (11-12): Co-founder, Co-president, 11-12. WRITING CENTER (11). TRUSTEE SCHOLAR, 2023-2024. UIL TRUSTEE SHOLAR, 2023-2024. NOTABLE KNIGHT, 2020-2021.

Meredith Grotevant

Meredith Grotevant performs at the final spring Guitar Concert in the McCallum Arts Center on May 16. (Francie Wilhelm)

CHAMBER GUITAR (9-12): Austin Independent School District Region Guitar Ensemble Member, 11, 12; University Interscholastic League State Solo and Ensemble Top Rating, 10-12; Hill Country Classical Guitar Ensemble Festival and Competition, First Place Quartet, 11 Third Place Quartet, 10. AISD All-City Guitar Ensemble Member, 10, 11). JAZZ BAND (10-12): Outstanding Musician Award, Temple College Jazz Fest, 10. YEARBOOK (10-12): Associate Editor, 11; Co-Editor-in-Chief, 12; 2023 SIPA Best Writing Contest, Third Place in Academic Copy, Community Copy and Groups Copy, 11. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12): Officer, 11, 12. KEY CLUB (10). WRITING CENTER (11-12). HISTORY CENTER (11-12). PIT ORCHESTRA (11-12): Pippin, Sweet Charity, Cabaret.

David Herring

WATER BALLOONS AND SMILES: Senior Peer Assistance and Leadership program member Jude Masoni holds up his fellow PAL, senior David Herring, as a human shield to protect himself from the path of an incoming water balloon. Students paid $1 to throw a balloon at the PALS on Tuesday as part of the shooting PAL-ery, one of the Pink Week fundraisers intended to raise money for the Breast Cancer Resource Center of Central Texas, an Austin-based non-profit that provides personalized support to those affected by breast cancer. Year after year the PALS put on Pink Week in order to raise funds and awareness for the fight against breast cancer. The PALS put on a variety of different events the whole week at lunch in hopes of both bringing in profits and bringing an exciting week of fun to the McCallum community. Herring was made a target of the water balloon by his cross country teammates. “I enjoyed seeing my teammates coming out to donate as I was telling them about it the week prior,” Herring said. “I was also just having fun on that nice day with my fellow PALS. Some of them that did the pallery that day, like Jude, I’ve known since elementary school.” Caption by Chloe Lewcock with reporting by JoJo Barnard. (Beatrix Lozach)

CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK (9-12): Cross-Country District 24-5A Champion, 12; two-time 3,200 District 24-5A Champion; 1,600 District 24-5A Champion; State 5A Cross-Country Meet qualifier. PALS (12). AUDIO-VISUAL PRODUCTION (9-11). SOCCER (9-10). NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (12). NEWSPAPER (12): Texas Association of Journalism Educators Best in Texas Contest, Online Caption Writing, Superior.

Henry Holmes

BOTS BEST: On Dec. 2, the robotics team participated in a tournament hosted at McCallum. Every team’s bot got five qualifying matches with the top-performing bots going to a single elimination bracket which would determine the winner. The team placed 13th, which is the highest they have placed this season. Senior Henry Holmes builds and manages the team’s notebooks. Holmes feels as though this tournament was a learning experience for the team. “We learned a lot this tournament,” Holmes said. “Unlike in the past, a clear strategy has emerged for every alliance with one scoring and one match loading, with a good bit of nuance in between.” Overall, Holmes believes they gave it their all. “We could have picked a better teammate in eliminations, but overall I think we did the best that we could have,” Holmes said. Holmes is ready for the next robotics competition. “The senior team will be coming back with a vengeance and all of McCallum’s teams now have a very strong sense of direction before the next competition,” Holmes said. Holmes’ confident prediction turned out to be accurate as the team qualified for the 2024 Vex World Championship after placing third in the skills competition at State. (Shila Gill)

VARSITY CROSS COUNTRY (11-12): Varsity Captain, 12; 2022 District 24-5A Cross-Country Meet, 12th Place, 11; 2023 District 24-5A Cross-Country Meet, 10th Place, 12. Regional Qualifier, 11, 12. ROBOTICS (10-12): Lead Builder, Lead Notebooker, 11-12; Third Place at State, 2022; Fifth Place at State, 2023; World Championship Qualifier, went 5-5, performance equivalent to top 3% of teams in the world, 2024. ENVIRONMENTAL KNIGHTS (12): Led and Co-Led the construction of two (soon to be three) gardens at Mac and raised the funds build them, 12. DEBATE (12): UIL Regional Qualifier in Persuasive Speaking, 12. PIANO (10-12): Earned a 2 at UIL Solo Ensemble.

Sophie Leung-Lieu

Blue Brigade co-captain Sophie Leung-Lieu leaps high off the House Park turf during during officer introductions prior to the Brigade’s performance to “Build Me Up Buttercup” at halftime of the Knights 32-14 loss to LBJ on Sept. 29. (Naomi Di-Capua)

`BLUE BRIGADE (9-12): First Lieutenant, 11; Co-Captain, 12; 2022 Crowd Pleasers Seguin High School Regional Showcase, First Runner-Up, Platinum 10th grade solo; 2022 Crowd Pleasers Line Camp Outstanding Performer, 11; American Dance Drill Team Contest, Division 1 10th grade solo; 2022-2023 Officer Camp All-American Outstanding Achievement in Dance; 2023 Crowd Pleasers Line Camp Outstanding Performer, 12; 2023-2024 Officer Camp, All-American Outstanding Achievement in Dance, All-American Exceptional Achievement in Dance, All-American Special Award, 12; 2022-2023, All-American Honorable Mention Team, 11; 2023 Crowd Pleasers Seguin High School Regional Showcase, Platinum 11th grade solo; 2023-2024 All-American Honorable Mention Team, 12; American Dance Drill Team Contest, Division 1 12th grade solo; 2024 Crowd Pleasers Dripping Springs Regional Showcase, Platinum 12th grade solo. NEWSPAPER (9-12): Design and Visuals Editors, 11, 12; 2023 UIL All-State Journalist, 11; Best of School Newspapers Online (SNO) Sites Awards, “How COVID testing works in a free-standing ER,” “Archery team surprises founder with national Coach of the Year Award,” 2020; “Pandemic provides no rest for the weary,” 2021; “Where are they now?” “Bob Bedard’s little acts of kindness made a big impact,” “Bob to hit the big screen,” 2022; “The Mario Bros. are back on rainbow road,” 2023; Columbia University 2024 Gold Circle Awards, First Place, design portfolio of work for news publications; Second Place, art/illustration portfolio of work for news publications; certificate of merit, op-ed or news analysis page design for news publications, sports page design for news publications and entertainment reviews for news publications; 2024 Texas Association of Journalism Educators Best in Texas News & Broadcast Contest, Superior, Original Artwork, Photo Essay Page, Entertainment Page Design (2), Editorial/Opinion Page Design; Excellent, Editorial Cartoon; Honorable Mention, Double Truck Package; 2024 Southern Interscholastic Press Association Best Visuals Contest, First Place, Newsmagazine design portfolio, Social media promotion portfolio; Second Place, Editorial Cartoon for “Our planet needs a plan,” Headline package; Third Place, Illustration, Sports package and Entertainment package; 2023 Texas Association of Journalism Educators Best in Texas Contest, Superior, Infographic Presentation for “Competing on the court,” Editorial Page Design for “Enact environmental education,” Feature Story for “Bob to hit the Big Screen,” Editorial Cartoon for “The lighter of two evils”; Excellent for Multimedia Presentation, “After year and a half of online school, young students face whole new normal back on campus,” Entertainment Page Design for “Music makes a movie,” Story Portfolio for “Print Newspaper Story Portfolio,” Editorial Cartoon for “Addressing substance abuse,” Editorial Page Design for “A losing lineup”; Honorable Mention, Entertainment Feature for “Sweet treats that hit the spot,” Infographic Presentation for “Worse than a mercury retrograde,” Feature Story for “Where are they now?” Feature Story for “Bob Bedard’s little acts of kindness made a big impact,” In-Depth News/Feature Package for “Bob Bedard’s little acts of kindness made a big impact,” Sports Feature Story for “Sweet treats that hit the spot,” Entertainment Feature for “Five letters. Six guesses. One shared obsession,” Feature Page Design for “Flipping the script”; 2023 Southern Interscholastic Press Association Best Visuals Contest, First Place, Social Media Promotion, Newsmagazine Feature Package for “Seeing these stars,” Newsmagazine Op-ed Package for “A losing lineup”; Second Place, Newsmagazine Portfolio, Newsmagazine Op-ed Package for “Enact environment education,” Newsmagazine News Package for “Climate change impacts Texas” Infographic for “Worse than a mercury retrograde”; Third Place, Newsmagazine Alternative Storytelling for “Layoffs afflict tech industry,” Newsmagazine Entertainment package for “Flipping the script”; 2023 Interscholastic League Press Conference Newspaper Individual Awards, First Place, Editorial page/spread design for “Enact environment education”; Second Place, Sports page/spread design for “Competing on the court,” Headlines; Third Place, Feature page/spread design for “Seeing these stars,” Entertainment page/spread design for “Flipping the script,” Infographic/sidebar for “Competing on the court”; *Honorable Mention: Editorial page/spread design: “A losing lineup”; 2023 Texas Association of Journalism Educators Fall Fiesta Individual Contest, Superior, Newspaper Design for “Individual on-site contest”; Honorable mention, Infographic; 2023 Interscholastic League Press Conference Online Individual Awards, First Place, Feature writing for “Bob to hit the big screen”; Third Place, Multimedia package for “Frazier: ‘He brings the energy. I bring the countriness”; 2023 Quill & Scroll International Photography, Writing and Multimedia Conest, Second Place, Sports page design for “Competing on the court”; Honorable Mention, Feature writing for “Bob hits the big screen,” Feature writing for “Five letters. Six guesses. One shared obsession”; 2022 Texas Association of Journalism Educators Best in Texas Contest, Superior, OP/ED Page Design for “You got a minute?” Excellent, In-Depth News/Feature Story for “Pandemic provides no rest for the weary”; Honorable Mention, Story portfolio, Sports Feature Story for “Archery team surprises founder with national Coach of the Year Award for his work to build, sustain team” In-Depth News/Feature Story for “Is the district doing enough to support its students’ mental health?” News Page Design for “Pandemic provides no rest for the weary”; 2022 Interscholastic League Press Conference Online Individual Awards, Third Place, Student artwork/cartoon for “‘No time to Die’ a sad send-off for Daniel Craig”; 2022 National Scholastic Press Association Fall Clips & Clicks Contest, Second Place, Newspaper Page/Spread for “Seeing these stars”; 2022 Texas Association of Journalism Educators Fall Fiesta Individual Contest, Excellent, Infographic for “The Youth Vote over time.” McCALLUM YOUTH DANCE COMPANY (9-10). KEY CLUB (10-12): Junior Officer, 11; Vice President, 12. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12): Senior Officer, 11-12. NATIONAL SCIENCE HONOR SOCIETY (11-12). MATH CENTER (11-12). STUDENT COUNCIL (11). ARCHERY TEAM (9), 2021 NASP State Qualifying Tournament, 11th Place, Ninth-Grade Girls; 2021 NASP State Tournament, 15th place, Ninth-Grade Girls; 2021 NASP Virtual Nationals Tournament, 299th place, Ninth-Grade Girls.

Malena Linse

A GOOD START: Seniors Malena Linse chats with Ayden Lee about the band’s performance of movements one and two at Bandapalooza last fall. Linse was impressed with what she saw. “I think Bandapalooza went pretty well,” Linse said. “A first performance is definitely stressful, but it was exciting to show off the show.” Linse is one of three drum majors, which places her in charge of conducting shows, as well as assisting with general rehearsal procedures. Linse believes that to have a good season, Mac band needs to bring its A-game to every rehearsal. “Since football and competition season is quickly approaching, we are going to start putting more on the field soon,” Linse said. “So being focused will help it go smoothly.” Photo by Lucas Walker.

MARCHING BAND (9-12): Section Leader, 11; Drum Major, 12. SYMPHONIC BAND (9). WIND ENSEMBLE (10-12): Clarinet Player; Region Band, 11, 12; Solo and Ensemble first division rating, 11. NON-VARSITY FULL ORCHESTRA (10-12): Clarinet Player. WRITING CENTER TUTOR (12). SAMBA KNIGHTS (11-12): Surdo Player, 11; Chocola Player, 12. NATIONAL ART HONOR SOCIETY (11-12). NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (12).

Ana Mejia

Senior dance major Ana Mejia performs her solo, “Cerando Este Capitulo,” at the first performance of “Perennial,” the student-directed dance show, on May 10 in the MAC. The performance stood out in part because it included live accompaniment provided by seniors Ellaiden Margrave and Sebastian Banks. Mejia also served as the business manager for the show. Her role in coordination with her other directors allowed her to incorporate ideas that she felt were important to the theme. “After one of the senior directors choreographed our class piece sophomore year, I began thinking about applying to be a director our senior year,” Mejia said. “My favorite parts of directing include applying what I learned in Mac dance over the years and working with a tight knit team.” For Mejia, the experience was monumental since it marked her last moments with the dance program and she wanted to commemorate that. “After shadowing Tyler [Mankinen], last year’s business director, I felt prepared to take on the role,” Mejia said. “It was incredibly rewarding watching the final product of the many outside of school hours the student directors, dancers and technicians put into this show.” The process for the six senior directors, however, wasn’t always streamlined and had moments where the team had to put their heads together. “It was very challenging choreographing three pieces, directing and dancing in two pieces,” Mejia said. “We worked together as a team and supported each other throughout the entire process.” The team was in charge, additionally, of setting up the timeline of the event, and rehearsals to improve on stage readiness. “I remember at the beginning of January we all agreed to start planning early so that we could give choreographers more time to think about their pieces,” Mejia said. “We wanted to have the choreographers follow the theme more closely so that they would have a more cohesive feel.” Caption by Chloe Lewcock. (Dave Winter)

McCALLUM YOUTH DANCE COMPANY (9-12): Business Director of the Student-Directed Show, 12; Student Choreographer, 10-12; Helped lead FAA Dance Major auditions, 10-12; Led warm ups in class, 10-12; Led a kids dance class for the Dance Arts Building opening celebration, 12; Highest scoring adjudicated solo selected to perform in the fall show, 11, 12. MACTHEATRE (9-12): Dance Captain, Descendants, 11; Choreographer, Antigone, 11; Choreographer, Student-Written Musical, 11; Co-Choreographer, Sweet Charity, which earned a HAYA nomination for Best Choreography, 12. EL ESCUDO (11-12): Founding member of the Mac's first Spanish column, 11; In charge of leading new members at the beginning of the school year, 12; 2024 Southern Interscholastic Press Association Best Writing Award, Second Place in the Blog Category. FINE ARTS ACADEMY AMBASSADOR (11-12), McCallum Youth Dance Company. PALS (12). UIL ACADEMIC TEAM (11-12): Club Co-President, 12; 2023 District 24-5A Academic Meet, Third Place, Social Studies. STUDENTS OF COLOR ALLIANCE (12); SCIENCE NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (12); NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE (11-12); MUSICAL THEATRE CERTIFICATE (9-12).

Sadie Roselle

At the varsity softball team’s Senior Night at April 13 at Butler Fields, senior Sadie Roselle and her parents walked through the tunnel formed by her teammates as a grand entrance prior to the first pitch. The Knights celebrated the occasion by soundly defeating the Travis Rebels by a final score of 21-0. The Knights jumped on the Rebels early, scoring seven runs in the first inning then clinching their victory in the second inning 14 more. Going into the game, which was played at noon on a Saturday, the team was determined to win for the seniors. Despite the unusual game time for a senior “night,” the seniors’ teammates pulled out all the stops to celebrate the seniors for their hard work over the past season. They presented them with gift baskets and cards. The team’s defense, hitting and base running allowed them to prevail on the night that meant so much to them. “I remember there was a lot of build up to the night,” senior Sadie Roselle said. “Everyone was spending a lot of time together beforehand. We were putting a lot of extra effort into our warmups and also having a good time and being silly and celebrating our last home game with the seniors before they went off to college.” After the regular season-ending win against Travis, the team advanced to the 5A state playoffs as the No. 3 seed from District 24-5A. In the bi-district round of the playoffs on April 24, the Knights lost to Elgin by a final score of 11-2. Although the Knights lost, senior Sadie Roselle said she was proud of the team’s determination and consistent energy. “We were fighting from the beginning to the end,” Roselle said. “Even though we went five innings without scoring, instead of giving up in the sixth inning, we ended up scoring two runs.” The Knights were the only District 24-5A team to avoid the dreaded run rule in their opening playoff game. “We were the only [5A] AISD [team] not to get run-ruled,” Roselle said, “which means that we were the only team not to lose by 15 runs. So for me that’s a win. We worked really hard to get to that point.” Salinas said that being a part of the softball team has allowed her to develop and build friendships with teammates. “Softball for me is just a place where I can have fun and be with friends and make some memories,” Salinas said. Roselle said that softball has been a constant for her throughout her four years of high school and that she has known many of her teammates since before freshman year. “[Softball] has been a community for me,” Roselle said. “It’s been something I’ve been a part of and something I can always count on for a long time. So just the stability of being on the team and always having those people to support has been really meaningful.”

SOFTBALL (9-12): Varsity letter, 9-12; Academic all-district team, 9-12; varsity team captain, 11-12. EL ESCUDO (12): 2024 Southern Interscholastic Press Association Best Writing Contest, Second Place, Blog category, 12; BEST OF STUDENT NEWSPAPERS ONLINE (SNO) SITES AWARD: For inaugural El Escudo bilingual podcast, 12; SEAL OF GLOBAL BI-LITERACY: In the process of earning, 12. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12): Junior Officer, 11; Senior Officer, 12; Presidential Service Award for 100+ hours of service. WRITING CENTER (11-12). KEY CLUB (11-12).

Keegan Sarwate

MESMERIZING MAZATLAN: Sophomore Mailyn Gil and senior Keegan Sarwate dance the Mazatlan together during the Cinco De Mayo show on May 3, put on by Ballet Folklorico. The Mazatlan dance comes from the region of Sinaloa. During the show, various dances, songs, and beats were performed to celebrate Cinco De Mayo, which celebrates the Mexican victory over France on May 5, 1862. This is Gil’s second year being part of Ballet Folklorico time and second year being a part of the Cinco De Mayo show. With Juana Gun, the former sponsor of Ballet Folklorico, leaving and Telvi Altamirano-Cancino taking over as the new sponsor, new performances were introduced into this year’s Cinco De Mayo show. One of which was the introduction of the steel drums. Watching the steel drums performance was Gil’s favorite part of this year’s show. “All of the club members were dancing and having fun backstage,” she said. As well as watching the drum performance, performing the Torito was Gil’s favorite part because of the costume elements. “Women wore the traditional Chiapas dress which has colorful flowers embroidered in it,” Gil said. “The men wear Torito masks which are handmade masks that look like bulls.” Ballet Folklorico has been practicing traditional dances for multiple weeks leading up to the big performance and also has spent time making various parts of costumes. Caption by Maya Tackett. (Henry McDaniel)

BANNED BOOK CLUB (10-12): Founder and President, 10-12. BALLET FOLKLORICO (11-12), Vice President, 12. STUDENT EQUITY COUNCIL (12): Member of Design Team, 12. EXCALIBUR (10-12): Content Editor, 10, 11; Editor in Chief, 12. CAMPUS ADVISORY COUNCIL (12).

Alice Scott

JOY TO THE NATION: Senior Alice Scott, 2022-2024 Shield co-editor in chief, poses with her 2024 JEA Journalist of the Year award plaque she had just received at the NSPA/JEA Spring National Journalism Convention NSPA Awards Ceremony in the Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center Grand Ballroom. (Kristen Scott)

THE SHIELD (9-12): online-co-editor-in-chief, 10; co-editor-in-chief, 11, 12; 2024 Journalism Educators Association (JEA) National Journalist of the Year, 12; 2024 Interscholastic League Press Conference (ILPC) Tops in Texas, Broadcast sports feature, Personal opinion column, 12; 2024 ILPC 5A INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS, First Place, In-depth news feature package, Feature page/spread design, Headlines, Personal opinion column, Broadcast sports feature story; Second Place, In-depth news feature package; Editorial writing; Video story; Third Place, News page/spread design; Honorable Mention, Video story, News feature. 2024 Quill and Scroll International Writing, Photography and Multimedia Contest, Third Place, In-Depth Reporting/Team Writing, Features Page(s) Design; Honorable Mention, Two-Page Spread; Photo Slideshow, DEI, Social Justice Writing; 2024 Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE) Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Contest, Best of the Best, First Runner Up, Online portfolio; Fourth Runner Up, Print design; Superior, Infographic Presentation, Sports Feature Photo, News Page Design, Broadcast Sports Story, Double Truck Package, Double Truck Package, Story Portfolio; Excellent, Photo Portfolio, News-Feature Story (2), Feature Story, Personal Opinion Column; Honorable Mention, Entertainment Feature, Headline Writing, News Story, Feature Story; Spring 2024 National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) Best in Show, Ninth Place, Newspaper/Newsmagazine Design; 2024 UIL District 24-5A Academic Meet, First Place, Editorial writing; Second Place, Headline writing; Third place, Feature writing; 2024 UIL Region 3-5A Academic Meet, Fifth Place, Headline writing; 2024 Southern Interscholastic Press Association (SIPA) Best Writing Competition, First Place, Feature photo cutlines; Third Place, News feature; 2024 SIPA Best Visual Competition, First Place, Photo gallery; Second Place, Photo story, News package, Newsmagazine portfolio; Digital storytelling, Photo gallery; Third Place, Human interest broadcast, In-depth cover story; Fall 2023 NSPA Clips and Clicks Contest, First Place, Newspaper/Newsmagazine Page/Spread; Third Place, Broadcast sports story; Fifth Place Editorial; 2023 NSPA Individual Awards, Second Place, Marketer of the Year Portfolio Competition, Story of the Year (Editorial); Honorable Mention, Newsmagazine Page/Spread of the Year, Interactive Graphic of the Year; Fall 2023 NSPA Best of Show, First Place, Broadcast news story, Editorial leadership; Third Place, Newspaper/newsmagazine design; 2023 TAJE Fall Fiesta; Superior, feature writing; video sports; Honorable Mention, video feature; 2023 ILPC Summer Workshop, Funkadelic Editor of the Year (editorial leadership); 2023 ILPC Spring Convention, 5A Newspaper Individual Awards, First Place, news feature, infographic/sidebar, feature page/spread design, news page/spread design; Second Place, sports page/spread design, photo story, headlines; Third Place, feature writing, infographic/sidebar, feature page/spread design, in-depth news/feature package; Honorable Mention, editorial writing; 2023 ILPC Spring Convention 5A Online News Individual Achievement Awards, First Place, news feature, editorial, in-depth news/feature package; Second Place, news feature; 2023 ILPC Spring Convention Print Newspaper Tops in Texas, Infographic, Feature page/spread design, News page/spread design; 2023 ILPC Spring Convention Online Newspaper Tops in Texas, Editorial writing, In-depth news-feature package; 2023 TAJE Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Competition, Best of the Best in Texas, print newspaper story portfolio, subjective writing; Best of the Best Runner Up, objective writing; Superior, caption writing, print newspaper story portfolio, feature story, in-depth news/feature package, infographic presentation, staff editorial, news story; Excellent, multimedia presentation (2), staff editorial, feature story, in-depth news/feature story, alternative copy, news magazine cover design, photo essay page; Honorable Mention, feature page design, news feature story, news feature story, double truck design; 2023 UIL Region 3-5A Academic Meet, Second Place, News writing; 2023 UIL District 24-5A Academic Meet, First Place, news writing, editorial writing, feature writing, ready writing; Second Place, headline writing; 2023 SIPA Best Visual Competition; First Place, feature package, photo essay; Second Place, table of contents, news package; Third Place, opinion package; 2023 SIPA Best Writing Competition, First Place, feature story, newsprint portfolio, personality feature; Second Place, news feature; Fall 2022 NSPA Clips and Clicks Competition, Second Place, newspaper page/spread; 2022 NSPA Individual Awards, First Place, Broadcast Journalist of the Year; Third Place, Broadcast Feature Story of the Year; 2022 NSPA Best in Show, Fifth Place, newspaper/news magazine design; 2022 TAJE Fall Fiesta; Superior, video feature story, video news story, feature writing: Honorable Mention, video feature story; Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop, First Place, newspaper editorial leadership presentation; 2022 ILPC Spring Convention 5A Individual Achievement Awards, Newspaper, First Place, in-depth news/feature, video story, headline portfolio; Second Place, personal column; Third Place, multimedia package, in-depth news/feature package; 2022 ILPC Spring Convention 5A Individual Achievement Award, Online News, First Place, multimedia package; 2022 UIL Region 3-5A Academic Meet; Fourth Place, feature writing; Fifth Place, editorial writing; 2022 UIL District 24-5A Academic Meet, First Place, feature writing; Second Place, news writing; Third Place, editorial writing, headline writing; 2022 Quill and Scroll International Writing, Photography and Multimedia Competition, First Place, documentary video; Second Place, multimedia feature package, video news package; Third Place, news writing, video feature package, video sports package; Honorable Mention, column, pandemic coverage: single stories, video feature package; 2022 TAJE Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Contest, Best of the Best: print news story portfolio; Superior, print story portfolio, online story portfolio, online multimedia package, print news feature, print sports feature, print sports feature, print entertainment review, online nameplate, folios and standing heads; broadcast sports story; Excellent, broadcast news story, broadcast feature story, broadcast feature story; Honorable Mention, broadcast sports story; 2022 Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA) Gold Circle Awards, First Place, video feature package; Second Place, video feature package; Third Place, informational graphics, video feature package; Certificate of Merit, sports feature; 2022 SIPA Best Writing Competition, First Place, entertainment/feature column; Second Place, broadcast sports script, column, sports feature, feature cutline; Third Place, broadcast feature script; 2022 SIPA Best Visual Competition; Best of Show, in-depth cover story package, digital storytelling; Award of Merit, digital storytelling, news package; Honorable Mention, broadcast short film, features package; PBS Student Reporting Labs 2021 20 Under 20 Up-and-Coming Journalists; Top 15 Stories of the Year; 2021 NSPA Clips and Clicks, Second Place, broadcast news story; Honorable mention, opinion story; 2021 NSPA Individual Awards, First Place, Multimedia Story of the Year Slideshow; Second Place, COVID-19 Coverage Broadcast: News/Feature; Third Place, Digital Story of the Year Interactive Graphic; Fourth Place, Digital Story of the Year Sports, Multimedia Journalist of the Year; Honorable Mention, Broadcast Story of the Year Commentary; 2021 NSPA Best of Show, First Place, broadcast feature story; 2021 Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop, Best column - specialized writing class; 2021 ILPC Spring Convention Tops in Texas, Entertainment review, Multimedia package; 2021 ILPC Spring Convention, 5A Newspaper Individual Achievement Awards, First Place, entertainment review; Second Place, news - page/spread design; Third Place, entertainment feature; Honorable Mention, sports feature story; ILPC Spring Convention, 5A Online News Individual Achievement Awards, First Place, multimedia package; Second Place, infographic/sidebar, multimedia package; Honorable Mention, video story; 2021 NSPA Spring Convention Best of Show; Sixth Place, broadcast news story; 2021 CSPA Gold Circle, Third Place, video news package; 2021 UIL District Academic Meet, First Place, news writing; Second Place, editorial writing; 2021 TAJE Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Contest, Superior, broadcast news story; Excellent, broadcast feature story, broadcast feature story; Honorable Mention, broadcast feature story, broadcast feature story; Excellent, news - feature story, entertainment feature story, multimedia presentation; Honorable Mention, feature page design, multimedia presentation, entertainment feature, infographic presentation; 2021 SIPA Best Writing Contest, Third Place, newsprint news feature; 2021 SIPA Best Visual Competition, Best in show, newsmagazine headline package, online digital storytelling, online opinion package, online sports package; Award of Merit, broadcast human interest story, broadcast sports coverage, newsmagazine entertainment package, newsmagazine design portfolio, student life photography; Honorable Mention, infographic; 2020 NSPA Best in Show; Ninth Place, COVID-19 reporting; 2020 Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop, Award of Merit, publication writing class. MACTHEATRE (9-12): House Manager for “Eurydice,” 10; Stage Manager for “Disney’s Descendants the Musical,” 11, Assistant Stage Manager for “Pippin,” 11, Stage Manager for student-produced musical, “Cows the Moosical,” 11, Stage Manager for “Rhinoceros,” 12. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (10-12): Officer, 12; WRITING CENTER (11-12); STUDENT LEADERSHIP TEAM (9);

Lanie Sepehri

In addition to her distinguished career as a journalist in Room 134, Lanie Sepehri also launched the McCallum History Center in the same room along with fellow Shield journalists Naomi Di-Capua and Caroline Owen, who were also juniors at the time. (Dave Winter)

THE SHIELD (9-12): Co-editor-in-chief, 12; co-people editor, 11; co-print managing editor, 11; National Scholastic Press Association Individual Awards, Writer of the Year, Fifth Place, 12; UIL 5A State Academic Meet, Third Place in Feature Writing, 11. UIL All-State Journalism Staff, 11; 2022 Interscholastic League Press Conference (ILPC) Newspaper Individual Achievement Awards, First Place, Personal Opinion Column for “It’s time to write off annotation,” Editorial Page/Spread Design for “It’s time to write off annotation,” Photo Slide Show; Second Place, Photo Story, Entertainment Feature for “Depop opens opportunities for clothes-minded Mac”; Third Place, Multimedia Package; Honorable Mention, Personality Profile Story for “For Fox, poetry offers a way to see life more clearly,” Sports News Story for “Tennis team doubles in size,” 10; 2022 Southern Interscholastic Press Association (SIPA) Awards, Best of Show Op/Ed Package for “It’s time to write off annotation”; First Place, Newsprint Editorial Column for “It’s time to write off annotation,” 10; 2021 Fall National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) Clips & Clicks Contest, Honorable Mention, Opinion for “It’s time to write off annotation,” 10. 2022 Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE) Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Competition, Superior, Personal Opinion Column for “It’s time to write off annotation,” Editorial/Opinion Page Design for “It’s time to write off annotation”; Excellent, Photo Gallery for “Standing up and walking out”; Honorable Mention, Sports Feature Story for “Tennis team doubles in size,” Entertainment Feature for “Lit mag adviser fosters leadership by creating community of equals,” Photo Gallery for “One last visit to Urinetown,” Photo Gallery for “Knights fill the campus on first day of school,” Entertainment Review for “‘Squid Game’ violent and violently thought-provoking,” 10. Fall 2022 NSPA Clips & Clicks Contest, Fifth Place, Sports Story for “Families that play together, stay together,” 11. Fall 2022 NSPA Best of Show Competition, Fourth Place, Newspaper/Newsmagazine Design for “New kids on the pyramid,” 11. 2023 Southern Interscholastic Press Association Awards, Second Place, Personality Profile for “A Starity is born”; Third Place for Online Portfolio, 11. 2023 ILPC Newspaper Individual Achievement Awards, First Place, Headlines, In-depth News/Feature Package for “Slipping through our fingers: Climate change issue”; Second Place, Portrait for “A Knight in shining arbor,” Entertainment Feature for “A Starity is born”; Third Place, Sports Page/Spread Design for “New kids on the pyramid,” Entertainment Review for “‘Midnights’ proves Taylor Swift is a true ‘Mastermind’”; Honorable Mention, General News Photo for “Capitol protestors show their support for Ukraine,” News Feature for “Fighting far from home,” 11. 2023 TAJE Best in Texas News and Broadcast Contest, Superior, In-depth News/Feature Package for “A taste of Fascist Peach Cobbler / Following their (day)dreams,” Entertainment Review for “‘Midnights’ proves Taylor Swift is a true ‘Mastermind,’” Sports Feature Story for “Families that play together, stay together,” News Story for “Dysfunctional air conditioning in library prompts decision to shut down blood drive prematurely”; Excellent, Photo Essay Page for “Like its titular character ‘Pippin’ continues evolving every act,” Feature Story f0r “Never judge a Knight by his armor,” Feature Story for “Superstar of science,” Feature Story for “Fire Station No. 2 will always be with her,” Headlines, Story Portfolio; Honorable Mention, Entertainment Feature for “The word on Wordle,” Sports Page Design for “New kids on the pyramid,” 11. 2024 TAJE Best in Texas News and Broadcast Competition, Best of the Best, Subjective Writing, Third Runner-Up; Best Portfolio, Second Runner-Up; Superior, In-Depth News/Feature Story, Feature Story, Story Portfolio, Entertainment Page Design, Sports Page Design, Feature Page Design, Entertainment Review, Sports Feature Story; Excellent, Sports Feature Story, Headline Writing, Photo Essay Page;
Honorable Mention, Entertainment Feature, 12; 2024 ILPC Tops in Texas, Sports Feature Story for "Vaulting over the hurdles," 12; 2024 ILPC 5A Individual Achievement Awards, Sports Feature Story, Feature Writing, Entertainment Review, Sports Page/Spread Design, Headlines, Entertainment Page/Spread Design, News Feature; Honorable Mention, Entertainment Feature Photo Story, 12; 2022 University Interscholastic League (UIL) District 24-5A Academic Meet, Second Place, Editorial Writing, Fourth Place, Feature Writing; Fifth Place, Copy Editing; Sixth Place, Headline Writing, 10; 2023 UIL District 24-5A Academic Meet, First Place, Headline Writing; Second Place, Feature Writing, Copy Editing; Third Place, Editorial Writing, Ready Writing, 11; 2023 UIL Region 3-5A Academic Meet, Third Place, Feature Writing, 11; 2023 UIL State 5A Academic Meet, Third Place, Feature Writing, 11; 2024 UIL District 24-5A Academic Meet, Second Place, Copy Editing, Editorial Writing, Feature Writing, 12; 2023 Spring NSPA Clips and Clicks Competition, Honorable Mention, Feature Story for “Through Reichman’s lens,” 11; Best of SNO (School Newspapers Online) Awards, "Vaulting over the hurdles," “597 days later, Austin Ukrainians keep fighting,” “Baxa named permanent principal,” “Kulhken rocks the wall,” “Through Reichman’s lens,” “From T-ball to team leader,” “A Starity is born,” “Superstar of science,” “‘Midnights’ proves Taylor Swift is a true ‘Mastermind,’” “Families that play together, stay together,” “Fighting far from home,” “Never judge a Knight by his armor,” “Depop opens opportunities for clothes-minded Mac,” “It’s time to write off annotation,” 10-12. HISTORY CENTER (11-12): Founder and President, 11-12. WRITING CENTER (11-12). FRENCH CLUB (10-12). NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12).

Sivaan Sharma

On Monday April 22, the first day of the Well Aware Shower Strike, McCallum PAL and senior Sivaan Sharma collected a donation from sophomore Lou Davidson during Round Table advisory in Mr. Winter’s classroom. The PALS would go on to set the national standard by raising $8,470 for the strike, more than any other school in the nation. The Shower Strike is the single biggest fundraiser annually for Well Aware, a non-profit organization based in Austin and in Kenya, which focuses on implementing sustainable clean water systems in communities that need them. The money the PALS raised will help about 450 people in Africa get clean, easy-to-access water. (Dave Winter)

PALS (11-12). BOYS SOCCER (9-10): JV-B team captain, 10; JV-B Most Valuable Player, 10; CINEMATIC ARTS MAJOR (10-12): Best Music Video. AV CLUB (10-12). LINK CREW (12). JOURNALISM: Personal column published on CNN website.

Ingrid Smith

Senior Ingrid Smith, the founder and leader of the Fiddle Club, took center stage with her club colleagues during a lunch time performance in the fine arts courtyard on Fine Arts Week Wednesday on April 24. (Dave Winter)

GOLF (10-12): Co-Captain, 12; UIL District Golf Tournament, Fourth Place, 12. SCIENCE NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (10-12): Co-President, 12; ORCHESTRA (9-12): co-concertmaster, section leader, Orchestra Student Council, social media manager; UIL Region 18 Orchestra; First violinist, ranked 13th in Austin area, 2023; First violinist, ranked 15th in Austin area, 2022; awarded principal second violinist, 2021; awarded second violinist, 2020; UIL State Solo and Ensemble, Superior “1” score, most difficult class piece, 2022; Excellent, “2” score, most difficult class piece, 2023; UIL District Solo and Ensemble, Superior “1” score, most difficult class piece, 2021, 2022, 2023; AISD Solo and Ensemble, Superior “1” score, most difficult class piece, 2021, 2022; Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show fiddle contest, Fourth Place, won $1,000 college scholarship, 2022. NEWSPAPER (9-12): co-editor-in-chief, 12; co-news editor, 11; co-online managing editor, 11; National Student Press Association Individual Awards, First Place, Podcast of the Year; Third Place, Multimedia Journalist of the Year; Honorable mention, Interactive Graphic of the Year, 2023; NSPA Clips and Clicks Competition, First Place, news story; Third Place, opinion story, 2023; Journalism Educators Association National Student Media Contest, Honorable mention, Newswriting, 2023; Quill & Scroll International Writing, Photography and Multimedia Contest, First place, Review writing; Third place, Profile writing,” 2023; Best of Student Newspaper Online Awards, 18; two SNO website showcase stories featured in Best of Best of SNO, November 2022 newsletter; Southern Interscholastic Press Association Best Writing and Best Visual Contests, First place, podcast, 2023; podcast script, 2023; caption portfolio, 2023; headline portfolio, 2023; Second place, computer graphic, 2023 ; student life photo, 2024; Third place, online writing portfolio, 2023; news story, 2023; blog, 2023; investigative story 2023; Winner, Computer graphics, 2022; Honorable Mention, Personality profile, 2022; UIL 2023 All-State journalism staff; UIL 5A State Academic Meet, Sixth place, news writing, 2023; UIL Region Academic Meet, First place, copy editing, 2024; Second place, copy editing, 2023; third place news writing, 2023; UIL District Academic Meet, First place copy editing, 2022, 2023, 2o24; news writing, 2024; Third place, news writing, 2023; Fourth place, editorial writing, 2023; Texas Association of Journalism Educators Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Contest, Seven “Superior” awards, 2023,2024; Two “Excellent” awards, 2023; Seven “Honorable Mention” awards, 2023; Interscholastic League Press Conference Individual Awards, Four “Tops in Texas” awards, 2022-23; 10 first place awards, 2022-2024; Eight second place awards. 2022-24; Four third place awards, 2023; WRKxFMLY Award of Excellence for photography; Honorable Mention for photography, 2021; Columbia Scholastic Press Association Gold Circle Awards, Certificate of Merit, sidebar writing for news publications, 2022; TAJE CENTEX UIL Invitational Meet, First place, Copy Editing, 2023; Second place, Feature Writing, 2023; Second place, News Writing, 2023; Fifth place, Copy Editing, 2022; Sixth place, 2023; Ninth place, Centex Feature Writing, 2022. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12). FIDDLE CLUB (11-12): Founder, Club leader, 11-12. KEY CLUB (11-12). FINE ARTS ACADEMY AMBASSADOR (12), orchestra.

Francie Wilhelm

Senior Francie Wilhelm covered what is arguably the most important story of the school year when the Shield Online posted, “Mac community takes a stand against hate group agitators” on Aug. 27. Not only did she win first place nationally in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion reporting category at the fall National Scholastic Press convention in Boston, but her breaking news coverage of the same events on the MacJ Instagram account received more follower response than any posts in the 10-year history of the account. (Dave Winter)

NEWSPAPER (9-12): co-news editor, 11; co-online managing editor, 11; co-editor-in-chief, 12; 2023 All-State Journalism Staff; Best of School Newspaper Online (SNO) Sites: 2021: "Vandalism wave beleaguers custodians, erodes trust," "Skating through struggles," "New property developments mean big changes for Austin," "McCallum, surrounding neighborhoods," 2021; "Cancer can’t stop Callan," "Torrential rain leads to costly ruin," "Breaking down the bond," 2022; "Starbucks workers go on strike," "Climate change impacts Texas," 2022; "Mac community takes a stand against hate group agitators," 2023; "Finding the Fab Four," 2024; Southern Interscholastic Press Association Writing Contest, Third place, yearbook people copy for "Freshman finds fulfillment by funneling free time into film, family"; Honorable mention, op/ed package for "Should hybrid learning return?" and sports story for "Skating through struggles," 2022: First place, online portfolio, 2023; Southern Interscholastic Press Association Visual Contest, Second place, online portfolio, creative group shot, 2023; Interscholastic League Press Conference Individual Achievement Awards. Second place, yearbook personality profile for "Freshman finds fulfillment by funneling free time into film, family" ; Honorable mention, sports feature for "Skating through struggles," 2022; Second place, sports page/spread design for "Competing on the court"; Third place, infographic sidebar for "Competing on the court," News feature for "Climate change impacts Texas," Online newspaper headline portfolio," Personal column for "Worse than a Mercury retrograde," 2023; Texas Association of Journalism Educators Best in Texas Newspaper and Broadcast Contest, Superior, online newspaper story portfolio; Excellent, sports feature story for "Skating through struggles"; Honorable mention, feature story for "A safe space for all," feature page design for "A safe space for all," sports page design for "Skating through struggles," news story for "Vandalism wave beleaguers custodians, erodes trust," feature story for "Freshman finds fulfillment by funneling free time into film, family," 2022; Superior, infographic presentation for "Competing on the court," news story for "Starbucks workers go on strike," feature story for "Cancer can’t stop Callan"; Excellent for story portfolio; headline writing; sports feature story for "New kids on the pyramid"; Honorable mention, caption writing; feature photo; portrait, 2023; National Scholastic Press Association Clips & Clicks Competition, Third place, sports story for "Skating through struggles"; Honorable mention, news story for "Vandalism wave beleaguers custodians, erodes trust," fall 2021; Honorable mention, news story for "Breaking down the bond," fall 2022; Quill & Scroll International Writing, Photo and Multimedia Contest, Second place, sports page design for "Competing on the court"; Honorable mention, profile writing for "Cancer can’t stop Callan," fall 2022; NSPA Fall Convention Best of Show, First place, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Reporting for "Mac community takes a stand against hate group agitators," 2023. NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (11-12): Junior Officer, 11; Officer, 12; SCIENCE CENTER (11-12): President, 12. MATH CENTER (11-12): President, 12; HISTORY CENTER (11-12). WRITING CENTER (12). LINK CREW (12); FRENCH CLUB (10-11).

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