SOMERS POINT — Students and their families joined local school administrators May 13 as the Ocean City-Upper Township Rotary Club held its annual Academic Achievement Night at Greate Bay County Club.
About 100 people gathered in a banquet room overlooking the golf course to celebrate the highest achieving students from Upper Township Middle School, Ocean City Intermediate School, Ocean City High School and Cape May County Technical High School.
Rotary Club President Aslam Sheikh welcomed the special guests and their families before leading the pledge of allegiance.
Michael Bolicki, banquet co-chairman with Bruce Engle, delivered the invocation before calling on the administrators to present the awards.
“We get a chance to give attention to the kids who are working hard all year, who put their nose to the books, who have a great work ethic and who are sometimes overlooked because the athletes get the attention,” Bolicki said. “We want to recognize them.”
Jeff Leek, principal of Upper Township Middle School, presented awards to seventh-graders Camryn Schiemer and Ryleigh Xu and eighth-graders Megan Hickey and Samuel Lowe. Hickey and Lowe are past winners as well.
Michael Mattina, principal of Ocean City Intermediate School, presented awards to seventh-graders Tessa DiAntonio and Michael Stankiewicz and eighth-graders Kendall Barnes and Andrew Pelaez.
Wendy O’Neall, principal of Ocean City High School, presented awards to freshmen Ella Miller and Farhan Alam, sophomores Riley Grawl and Addisyn Fisher, juniors Liam Colangelo and Jake Tracy and seniors Bridget Breedeen and Aili Kelley.
Impressively, Kelley has earned the recognition every year since seventh grade.
“I do my homework,” she said with laugh, noting she takes “a fair few AP classes” that help boost her GPA.
Following graduation, she plans to study chemical engineering at Rutgers University.
Fisher also is a repeat achiever.
Jamie Moscony, superintendent of Cape May County Technical High School, presented awards to freshmen Anthony Henrich and Madison Hughes, sophomores Amine Cherifi and Sheyla Bautista, juniors Mina Bixby and Matthew Pinto and senior Matt Hirt and Lisa Cherifi. Bixby, Pinto, Hirt and Lisa Cherifi have earned the recognition in the past.
The Rotary Club also awarded six $1,000 scholarships, four to OCHS seniors and two to Cape May Tech seniors.
Engle presented the Walter Smith Memorial Scholarship to Kelley. Phil Geisler awarded the Bob French/Richard Kabat Memorial Scholarship to Kara Hender. Randi Scheck, filling in for Sallie Godfrey, presented the Herbert Godfrey Memorial Scholarship to Annika Martin. Sheikh awarded the Esther Weil Scholarship Award to Ryan Mulraney.
Scheck presented the Joseph Hartman Memorial Scholarship to Lisa Cherifi and the Thomas Shaiko Memorial Scholarship to Hirt.
– PHOTOS and STORY by CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
