Pueblo East senior named Pueblo Chieftain Student of the Week
A.J. Moreno, a senior at East High School, has been selected Pueblo Chieftain Student of the Week by readers.
Moreno is recognized by East math teacher Kareen Lopez as a "standout student" with a journey "defined by excellence and dedication." Moreno is the winner of four academic letters, a four-year participant in Key Club and a four-year participant in GEAR Up.
Before graduating from East on May 25, Moreno also completed two years in East's International Baccalaureate program, competed as a member of the Eagles' golf team and took part in Junior Achievement. He received over 43% of votes in a hotly contested poll featuring six impactful students from local high schools last week.
Last week's feature and poll highlighted the accomplishments of students representing Centennial High School, Central High School, Dutch Clark Digital Online at Paragon, East High School, South High School and Pueblo County High School. Here are last week's other nominees.
Nikolas 'Niko' Davila, Central High School
Nikolas Davila is still a few days from high school graduation, but the Wildcat senior already has made his mark at Colorado State University Pueblo. Davila earned a 4.0 GPA at the university last fall and his current schedule is filled with college classes. Looking to earn his master's in athletic training, Davila has volunteered with Let's Move, lettered twice in golf and been a part of several organizations while at Central.
MaKayla Martinez, Pueblo County High School
MaKayla Martinez is a 4.50 GPA student set to graduate from Pueblo County High School's School of Engineering and Biomedical Sciences. She has qualified for state in tennis twice and participated in the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) program and the School to Employment Program (STEP) at UCHealth Parkview Medical Center. She will be studying nursing at CSU Pueblo after high school graduation.
Jaime Pearson, South High School
Jaime Pearson already has earned 62 college credits and an associate's degree from Pueblo Community College. She will graduate from South on May 25 after having earned a weighted GPA of nearly 4.3, spending time as Student Body Treasurer and playing three sports. The two-time Southern Colorado Runners Youth Female Runner of the Year will compete in track and cross county at Western Colorado University.
Merissa Reyes, Dutch Clark Digital at Paragon
Merissa Reyes, a Dutch Clark Digital at Paragon junior, lives by the Walt Whitman quote, "Keep your face always towards the sunshine and shadows will fall behind you." After graduating, Reyes hopes to pursue a career in nursing or real estate. She also aspires to travel the world and have new experiences. Reyes encourages her fellow students to set goals for themselves and actively participate in the classroom.
Jacob Welte, Centennial High School
Jacob Welte is one of 50 Colorado high school students to earn a Boettcher scholarship this year, in addition to being a recipient of the prestigious, tri-county Hurliman scholarship. The Centennial senior has aspirations to become a clinical psychologist after completing his studies at the University of Denver. Welte competed as the Bulldogs' No. 1 singles player in boys tennis last fall and has the highest GPA at Centennial with a 4.56.
Last week's winner: Pueblo South's Luke Dehn named Pueblo Chieftain Student of the Week
Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached at JBartolo@gannett.com. Support local news, subscribe to The Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: East's A.J. Moreno named Pueblo Chieftain Student of the Week
