Applause - Oct. 31, 2011

31 Oct 2011 04:52
Written by Woodinville Weekly Staff

Two Monroe High seniors were summoned to the school principal’s office recently. Sounding ominous they quickly responded to learn it was good news. They were named semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship competition.

Matt Engel

Howard Chen

“I was fairly surprised,” says Matt Engel. “I thought I was in some big trouble.”

“We didn’t know the cut-off date,” says Howard Chen. “Nobody knows what distinguishes us from each other.” Chen and Engel and two other MHS students received preliminary recognition in the National Merit Scholarship Program last spring.

For both the young men, earning a National Merit Scholarship would be a boost toward achieving their goals. Chen plans to be a physician and is making applications to four-year colleges, such as the Honors College at Arizona State University, and the medical program at Rice University.

Engel dreams of becoming an astronaut and plans to get a degree in physics, mechanical engineering or perhaps geology. He is looking at Cal Tech, University of Washington, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Both students will be very busy in the months ahead before they hear about scholarship results. Engel has just completed his FAA exam and will take his FAA flight test to receive his pilot’s license for single engine land planes. He is carrying a full load at school and is active in four clubs as well as cross country.

Chen plays varsity tennis in addition to taking five AP classes, including an independent study in calculus.

Lauren Anderson, a freshman of Biola University and resident of Bothell received the President’s scholarship for the 2011/2012 academic year.

Lena Seino

Woodinville High School class of 2007 graduate Lena Seino recently graduated from the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University with a bachelor of arts in communications.While at WSU she served on the board of directors for the Bookie, did volunteer service in Japan and Germany two summers as well as in New Orleans her last year at WSU. She was an active member of Alpha Chi Omega Sorority. Lena has now been accepted to the Executive Masters of Public Health at the University of Washington and started her work in this program last month.

Ron Albrecht, a Woodinville resident who lost his son Drew to meningitis when he was 15 years old, has joined the Voices of Meningitis campaign. “I am committed to educating other parents who haven’t yet vaccinated their children about the dangers of meningitis, and why prevention is so important,” Albrecht said. “Meningitis does not discriminate and it starts causing damage before you even know it’s there. Vaccination is the best method we have to protect our children. All parents with preteen or teenage children should make sure their children are protected. It just might save their life.”

Albrecht encourages parents to visit www.VoicesofMeningitis.org and the Raise Your Voice Against Meningitis Facebook page to hear from other families who have been affected by this disease and to learn more about vaccination.

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