York High School names Top Decile students of the Class of 2022

YORK, Maine — York High School has announced their Top Decile students for the Class of 2022. They are in alphabetical order:

Avery Shea Boissonneault

Avery Shea Boissonneault is the son of Meagan and Jarod Boissonneault. He is a member of the National Honor Society and the Spanish Honor Society. He has also received the Maine Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish. During the past four years, he has been a committed volunteer within and outside YHS. He has been a member of York High School’s Interact Club all four years, and has served as president for the last two. He was also accepted into York High School’s TIDALWAVSE (Teens in Drug Awareness Leading Working and Valuing Self-Esteem) group freshman year, and is currently the president. Throughout the past two years, he has been a leading and founding member of the Yellow Tulip Project chapter at YHS. His volunteer, advocacy, and community building efforts were recently recognized, as the recipient of the Daughters of the American Revolution Good Citizen Award. Academically, he has received awards in English, business law, and career planning and financial literacy. In addition, he will receive an AP Capstone diploma for successful completion of the AP Capstone courses, Seminar and Research, as well as five additional AP courses. Next year, he will continue to pursue his interests while studying behavior and health, with minors in education and political science, at Boston University.

Ellyson 'Elly' Bourgoine

Ellyson “Elly” Bourgoine, daughter of Barb and Derek Bourgoine, and sibling to Evan Burgoyne, who attends Virginia Tech, was born and raised in York. Since a young age, Elly has been dedicated to her education as well as her extracurricular activities, community service, and character. In addition to being a member of the National Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, Interact Club, and Student Government, she also received the Iron Wildcat award for playing 12 sports seasons during her time at YHS. This includes varsity field hockey, indoor track, and softball. Leadership roles have always been an important reflection of her dedication and character to what she does, including being the captain of the Softball team and treasurer of the Interact Club. She is very passionate about social sciences, politics, history, and civil rights. She will be attending the University of Maryland to pursue a degree in government and politics.

Connor D'Aquila

Connor D’Aquila, Valedictorian, is the son of Ann and John D’Aquila. In his time at YHS, he was class president for four years and founded York’s chapter of Future Business Leaders of America, while also being president of that club for three years. He also played soccer and was a two-year captain of the tennis team. Years as a speech and debate captain, newspaper editor, and technical assistant for the drama club have been other fond memories. Additionally, he was a National Merit Scholarship Finalist, and a member of the National and Spanish Honor Societies. Outside of school, he has been a student member of the York Climate Action Plan. Next year, Connor will attend the University of Notre Dame as a Malpass Scholar with a finance major.

Eric Dunnington

Eric Dunnington is the son of Michael Dunnington and Kerry Dunnington. He has achieved high honors every year during his time at York High School, and is also a member of the National Honor Society and the Spanish Honor Society. He was involved in many extracurricular activities, such as competing in the World Finals of the Odyssey of the Mind program, being on the cross-country ski team, and being a dedicated member of the York Math Team. In terms of community service, Eric helped to clear trails and distribute winter equipment as a member of the cross country ski team. He has been given awards in art and health, and has been awarded over $150,000 in scholarships and financial aid from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute over his 4-year college experience. At RPI, he will study physics with a minor in astronomy, with a goal of someday becoming a researcher for NASA.

Caitie Edminster

Caitie Edminster is the daughter of Julie and Brett Edminster. Last year, Caitie was recognized by the Society of Women Engineers for her achievements in math and science and was awarded commendation through the National Merit Scholarship program. She achieved high honors throughout her time at York High School. Caitie participated in many activities at York High School, including lacrosse, basketball, Future Business Leaders of America Club, and the Robotics Club. Additionally, after five years of training, she received her black belt in Taekwondo at Park's Taekwondo School. She was also a member of the World Language Honor Society for her accomplishments in Spanish. Caitie is excited to attend the Honors Program at Providence College, where she received the St. Catherine of Siena Scholarship, the highest merit scholarship offered. She will be majoring in physics and hopes to one day pursue a career in nuclear medicine.

Margaret Elizabeth Hamel

Margaret Elizabeth Hamel is the daughter of Lisa and Steve Hamel. She is a member of the National Honor Society, French Honor Society, and Spanish Honor Society. She is an active member of the York High School Drama Club and has performed in every production throughout her four years at York High School. Margaret is a member of the York High School Chamber Singers and was selected for the Maine State District One Choir and the Maine All-State Choir multiple times. She was also the co-editor of the yearbook this past year. Margaret is passionate about learning different languages and cultures and plans to study secondary education with a French concentration at the University of Maine in the fall.

Zoe Elizabeth Jellison

Zoe Elizabeth Jellison, daughter of Jeffrey and Elizabeth Jellison. She participated in NHS, Yellow Tulip Project, Treble Choir, Chamber Singers, and World Language Honor Society. She also received her Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish. Additionally, she received awards for Spanish, English, and a Director's Award for Chamber Singers. She will be majoring in costume design and production at Boston University.

Sylvain MacGovern

Sylvain MacGovern, Salutatorian​,​​​​ is the son of Peter MacGovern and Coralie Clement. He was heavily involved in many extracurriculars in his time at YHS, often in a leadership position. These include captain of varsity cross-country, indoor, and outdoor track teams, robotics, math team, the National Honor Society, and the Spanish National Honors Society. He also received various distinctions, including being named National Merit Scholar Finalist, a Seal of Biliteracy, a Search of Knowledge Bowl Award, many YHS Academic Awards, and a Bausch and Lomb Honorary Science Award. Next year, he’ll be attending Northeastern University with an undeclared engineering major and a marine biology minor.

Hunter Pruett

Hunter Pruett is a well-rounded student taking accelerated classes in math, science, English, and social studies. Hunter has also dedicated himself to many clubs, organizations, and sports at York High School. As a three-season varsity captain for cross country, winter track, and spring track, Hunter has demonstrated his leadership abilities and commitment to the community. Hunter’s participation and success in vex robotics allowed him and his team to qualify and compete in Vex Robotics Worlds, demonstrating his knowledge and skill set in engineering. Furthermore, Hunter has dedicated himself to the community through numerous hours of volunteering and has worked to promote fun chem free lifestyles as a member of York High School’s TIDALWAVSE.

Reese Anne Ronca

Reese Anne Ronca is the proud daughter of Kirsten and Matthew Ronca. She is a member of the National Honor Society and the Spanish Honor Society. Since freshman year, she has been an active member of York High School’s Interact Club. Currently, she is the volunteer coordinator of the club, and during her junior year, she served as the treasurer. She has been a valued and diligent worker at Fox’s Lobster House, and is in her fifth summer working there. In addition, she volunteered as a teacher’s assistant for Village Elementary School, helping students with math and writing. She has recently received academic awards for Spanish V Honors and AP Environmental Science; during her junior year, receiving academic awards for Honors Psychology and Honors Composition. In the fall, she is extremely excited to be studying economics at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut as an 1823 Scholar.

Roan Spencer

Roan Spencer is the son of Michael and Annette Spencer. He is a member of the National Honor Society serving as York’s chapter president this year, World Languages Honor Society, and is a class officer. Roan is an AP Scholar with Honors and received the Maine Seal of Biliteracy for Spanish. He has enjoyed being a member of the Eco Club and the Future Business Leaders of America, as well as serving on York’s Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee. He played varsity soccer and lacrosse, serving as a captain of both of these teams his senior year. Roan was chosen to attend the HOBY and Western Maine Athletic Leadership Conferences. He is also the recipient of the Brandeis Book Award, the Daughters of the American Revolution Award for Outstanding Work in American History, and was fortunate to be chosen as the recipient of the Maine Principal’s Award this year. Roan will attend Haverford College, where he will be a member of the men’s lacrosse team and major in history and economics.

Callen Swann

Callen Swann is the son of Kristen and Kyle Swann. During his time at YHS, Callen was a member of the Spanish Honor Society, the French Honor Society, and the National Honor Society, where he most recently served as vice president. He was the junior class representative on the Inclusion Advisory Committee, working with faculty and administration to combat racism and create a curriculum that encourages and reflects diversity of all sorts (economic, ethnic, gender). During his junior and senior years, Callen served as treasurer for the York High School chapter of Future Business Leaders of America. Callen ran cross country and played lacrosse all four years in high school; he was awarded MVP for the cross-country team his senior year. Callen has received awards in AP Art, AP Environmental Science, and French. Having taken French and Spanish concurrently for three years, he received the Multilingual Achievement Award and the Maine Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish this year. In the fall, Callen will attend Middlebury College, where he will pursue a degree in Architecture and Environmental Studies.

Charlotte Williamson

Charlotte Williamson is the daughter of Kristina Young and Paul Williamson. She has been heavily involved in extracurriculars during her time at YHS. She is a member of the National Honor Society and the French National Honor Society. She has spent time volunteering at York Hospital at the COVID Vaccine Clinic. Charlotte held positions of leadership, such as vice president of the Future Business Leaders of America Club at YHS. Academically, she has obtained a high GPA and received multiple honor awards. In addition to achievements in academics, Charlotte is also involved in athletics. She played soccer and ran track for all four years of high school, and was a senior captain on both of these teams. This fall, Charlotte will continue her education at the University of Connecticut, where she will major in biology.

Sage Works

Sage Works is the daughter of Lori White. She is a member of the National Honor Society, the Spanish World Language Honor Society, has received her Maine Seal of Biliteracy for Spanish, and is the proud recipient of the Wellesley College Book Award. During her time at York High School, she was heavily involved in different clubs and leadership positions including Interact, The Yellow Tulip Project, and TIDALWAVSE. In addition to her involvement in clubs, she was a four-year varsity athlete in field hockey and lacrosse, where she was voted captain in both sports her senior year. She was one of three finalists in the Maine Field Hockey Association’s Miss Maine competition, and received an academic all-state award from the MFHA. In the fall, Sage is attending the University of Glasgow in Scotland, where she is pursuing a genetics degree and will continue playing field hockey at a club level.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: York ME High School Top Decile students of the Class of 2022