At the last Carmel Clay School Board meeting on Jan. 24, the school district honored seniors Zenas Shi, Kevin Song and David Zheng as well as junior Lyndon Ji for their recent successes in the Siemens Competition. Junior Kevin Zhang was also recognized for achieving a perfect score on the SAT.

According to school board president Tricia Hackett, the district occasionally does special recognitions for outstanding achievements to reflect the community’s pride in having such bright students.

“Sometimes we get so used to hearing about these accomplishments we forget to stop and take note,” Hackett said. “However, none of us should take any of these achievements for granted.  Academic, performing and visual arts, athletic, charitable—all reflect different aspects of personal growth.”

Zhang, who attended the ceremony, said the support from the audience was overwhelming. When he went up to receive his certificate, the crowd gave him a standing ovation.

“It’s already amazing enough to be one of only 300-some people out of 1.6 million to get a perfect,” Zhang said. “I felt humble, but happy.”

Hackett said the school board will continue to have special recognitions, as it has done so in the past.

Hackett said, “It is important to honor the individual for outstanding effort, but also make others aware of the possibility of achievement around them.” By Rebecca Xu <[email protected]>