Congratulations to Methuen High School student Amanda Aziz for winning the December SOAR Award. Her write-up is below.

The Social Studies Department is proud to announce Amanda Aziz as the winner of the 2011-2012 S.O.A.R. Award.

Amanda is the daughter of Richard and Patricia Aziz. She and her parents, along with her three younger brothers, who are all enrolled at Methuen High School, live at 44 Wingate Avenue. Amanda is currently ranked 7th in the class of 2012 and is in the top 1% of her graduating class with a 4.43 GPA. She is a two-year member of the National Honor Society. Amanda is currently taking AP European History, her second AP course in Social Studies, as she was enrolled in AP US History during her junior year. She received a 4 out of 5 on the AP US History exam in the spring. In fact, Amanda is currently enrolled in four AP courses, including AP Calculus, AP Spanish Literature and AP English Literature as well as taking two during the 2010-2011 school year. These schedule choices are evidence of her commitment to a rigorous schedule in order to be ready for college. She hopes to major in history or political science at her top choices, which are currently Tufts University and the University of Notre Dame.

Amanda was nominated by her AP European History teacher, Mr. James Peirce. Mr. Peirce stated that “Amanda is the embodiment of character and dedication and she is a deserving choice for this award. The respect that Amanda’s peers possess for her is well-deserved. She genuinely cares for those around her and she is always the first to offer help to those that face challenges.” Her AP US History teacher, Anna Timko Hughes, offers more about just how compassionate and driven Amanda is – “Amanda’s peers overwhelming predicted that she would be ‘the first woman president who advocated history education’. With her drive and energy, I can see this prediction becoming a reality.”

Along with all of these academic accolades and faculty recommendations, Amanda is a highly competitive student athlete, captaining the Field Hockey team during her senior year, receiving All-Star recognition from the Merrimack Valley Conference and the Betty Barry Award during the Fall Sports Banquet. She is a core member of the Methuen High chapter of SADD, and has been the team captain for SADD during the annual Relay for Life. She volunteers her free time to help out local charities such as Cor Unum Soup Kitchen and Lazarus House, while finding time to hold down a part-time job at Jay Gee’s.

The Social Studies Department is proud and honored to have such an amazing young woman represent us as the SOAR Award Winner in 2011!