Local senior scores perfect 36 on ACT

Janie Slaven, The Sentinel Echo, London, Ky.
·3 min read

Dec. 21—Getting a high ACT score is the goal for any high school student planning to attend college. A perfect score is hard to come by, with less than one percent of all test-takers earning that 36.

Joaquin Santiago C. Pauig, 17, is now in that elite group.

The London senior, who attends the Gatton Academy for Mathematics and Science on the Western Kentucky University campus in Bowling Green, recently learned of his perfect score after taking the test on October 25.

"Gatton's more of a college system," Pauig said. "You're considered a WKU freshman and sophomore while you're there."

Because of the number of class exams scheduled the week he took the test, including a Biology test immediately after this ACT, Pauig shared that he wasn't able to study for the college-prep test as he normally might. Practice makes perfect, however, as the old saying goes and Pauig was confident because he'd not only been studying for the test since he was a freshman at Corbin High School (having transferred to Corbin after attending Bush Elementary through the 4th grade) but he'd taken it every year since.

Pauig earned a 32 on the first ACT he took, which increased to a 34 his sophomore year then 35 his junior year.

"I just made sure I was well-rested," Pauig said of his preparation for his latest ACT, noting he had felt tired when he took it last year. "I feel blessed with the score but I was dumbfounded that I got a 36."

Pauig also credited Gatton's courses, particularly in math, and tutoring as building his knowledge base and test-taking capabilities "so there's less studying involved." He still recommends studying, though, for fellow high schoolers that haven't yet taken the ACT.

"It still requires a lot of patience and work to get to the 36," he said. "My 36 didn't come overnight."

Upon graduation from Gatton, Pauig's choices of a university include Vanderbilt, Emory or one of the Ivy League schools like Harvard or Princeton.

Pauig plans to pursue Neuroscience, Biology or a similar pre-med pathway in college so he can become a doctor. He is currently involved in two research projects — one exploring a genetic-level cure for autism and the other looking into plant cells with anti-cancer properties.

"I'd like to minor or have a double major in Computer Science," Pauig added.

His hobbies include listening to music and watching gamer vlogs, foodie shows and "anything that pops-up on his phone." He plays saxophone and ran on the cross-country team of Corbin High School before going to Gatton Academy.

At Gatton, he was chosen as an Avatar with one of his responsibilities being to show potential students and their families around the school and providing information and answering questions about Gatton Academy. He also tutors at the Boys and Girls Club of Bowling Green.

Pauig is the son of Drs. James and Cristina Pauig of London. He has two older siblings, both of whom are Corbin alums and currently attend the University of Louisville.