Meet the Class of 2025's top students from around Otsego County
GAYLORD — High schools in Otsego County have revealed their valedictorians and salutatorians for the Class of 2025.
With graduation just days away, meet this year's top scholars from Gaylord High School, St. Mary Cathedral School and Johannesburg-Lewiston High School.
This year's valedictorian for Gaylord High School is Noah Enders, the son of Chasity and Patrick Enders. In school, he was involved in the National Honor Society, Key Club, basketball and the Youth Advisory Committee.
Chemistry was Enders' favorite subject, because "it was interesting to see how the world worked."
He plans on attending the University of Michigan to study aerospace engineering and will pursue a career in space or satellites.
"I would not have been able to make it to where I am if it were not for my mother and father, who are both teachers in the Gaylord Community Schools," said Enders.
Nathan Alexander is the 2025 salutatorian for Gaylord High School. He is the son of Kristy and Jason Alexander.
Alexander was involved in hockey, track, student council, Key Club and the National Honor Society.
"My favorite subject would be science. I enjoy applying the concepts of science to real life," he said.
Alexander will attend Grand Valley State University to major in electrical engineering and minor in business.
"I would like to thank my parents, family and friends for supporting me throughout my educational journey," said Alexander.
The 2025 valedictorian is Hogan McKinley, the son of Jennifer Wilt and Kevin McKinley. His activities during school include football, basketball, baseball, golf, the National Honor Society and working at Garland's golf course.
McKinley had a 4.04 GPA and his favorite subject is math.
"It has always been super easy to understand and there are many real world applications, especially for the future I wish to have," he said. "I plan to attend Michigan Tech to study general engineering (and) from there I will hopefully find a branch in engineering that I like and study that until I find a job. I couldn't have asked for a better class (and) this high school and staff was amazing."
The 2025 salutatorian is Madalyn Jewett, the daughter of Angela and Lewis Jewett. Her GPA was a 4.1.
Jewett was involved in cheer, theater and track during school.
"My anatomy class was probably one of my favorites in my (high school) career. I loved my teacher and genuinely enjoyed the content of the class," she said. "My ASL (American Sign Language) class was one of my favorite classes. I love learning different languages and I use my knowledge from the class still after two years."
Jewett plans on attending Saginaw Valley State University and majoring in early childhood education with special needs. Jewett also hopes to attend medical school to study psychiatry.
Eliza Idalski, Kyler Nowak and Samuel Sides are the 2025 valedictorians at Johannesburg-Lewiston High School.
Idalski is the daughter of Heather and Wayne Idalski. She had a 4.0 GPA.
Her high school activities included golf, track and field, and volleyball. Idalski was also a frequent blood donor and was in the street art workshop series.
Idalski said her anatomy and physiology classes were favorites, "because it introduced me to the medical field as a profession. I plan on going to Lake Superior State University to pursue a career in nursing."
Nowak earned a 4.0 GPA and is the son of Danica and Jeff Nowak.
His volunteer and community work while in high school included blood drives, Night to Shine, youth sports, Lewiston Fall Fest and time at the Montmorency County Veterans Service Office.
Nowak was the captain of the basketball and football teams, and was also on the baseball and golf teams. He was active in the National Honor Society.
"Mr. Proctor taught me a lot of important things both as a teacher and a coach," Nowak said.
Sides had a 4.0 GPA and is the son of April and Kerby Sides.
He was a four-year baseball and basketball athlete.
"I help the community when needed. I enjoy history because it is the most intriguing subject," Sides said.
He plans to attend the honors college at Michigan State University.
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Donald Wojtkowiak is the 2025 salutatorian for Johannesburg-Lewiston High School. He earned a 3.99 GPA and is the son of Lisa and Rob Wojtkowiak.
He played basketball and baseball and had a dual enrollment through Alpena Community College. Wojtkowiak was also involved with Odyssey of the Mind in his freshman and sophomore years.
Wojtkowiak's favorite subject was physics because he likes to see how things are broken down into specific forces and processes.
He plans to major in civil engineering at Michigan Tech.
— Contact Paul Welitzkin at pwelitzkin@gaylordheraldtimes.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Meet the Class of 2025's top students from around Otsego County
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