COURTESY PHOTO

Students at Badin High School participated in the school’s first-ever academic signing day, acknowledging the academic prowess achieved by the class of 2007.

Students honored as Badin High holds first academic signing day

HAMILTON DEANERY — Eighteen students were honored as Badin High School hosted its first academic signing day in late May.

"This was really something worth doing," said BHS Principal Frank Margello. "We recognize students for a lot of things, but when you’re in school, education is Job One. I know that a lot of schools have picked up the academic signing torch and run with it. That’s fine. Maybe it’s something that every school in the area should do to recognize their classroom standouts."

The school recognized the top 10 students in the class of 2007 as well as those students who have been tendered $100,000 or more in academic scholarships.

Craig Hansen and John Scott Mense are the co-valedictorians of the senior class. Hansen is headed to the University of Cincinnati, and Mense will attend Saint Louis University. Both are planning to major in pre-med.

"There is a lot of academic achievement in this class," said Teresa Heinrich, Badin’s academic dean. "They have done very well in high school, and we know this is just the first stepping stone of success in their lives."

Of the 163 members of the class of 2007, 78 students received scholarship and grant offers. The financial total of scholarship, grant and athletic scholarship offers was $5.48 million, with another $1.92 million in financial aid offers, for a total of $7.4 million in scholarships, grants and financial aid to the class.

Among those recognized in the senior class were Isaac "Ike" Leuthold, who has been appointed to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.; and Zac Wilkins, who will attend Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland after also being admitted to Brown, Carnegie Mellon, Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins, Marshall, Michigan, Vanderbilt and Villanova.

Others honored during the Academic Signing Day and their college selections included: Kory Anstead (Cincinnati), Kate Ceronie (Miami), Chris Charnegie (Muskingum), Matt Frankey (Mount St. Joseph), Wally Gerbus (Eastern Michigan), Andrew Hoerst (Miami), Lauren Lavelle (Miami), Annie Marcum (Georgia), Matt Pandl (Ohio State), Carrie Phillips (Ohio State), Amy Pohlman (Ohio State), Andy Shaver (Case Western Reserve), Leila Sloneker (Miami) and Jeff Wolf (Purdue).