Isaac Arnold and Gabriella Marconi were invited to lunch with the Austin Rotary Club in January. They were selected for being senior students who excel in academics, leadership and/or activities.

Isaac Arnold

Activities and hobbies: Varsity hockey, soccer, National Honor Society, LinkCrew, Friendship group, church youth group, spike ball, playing sports with friends

Awards and recognitions: National Honor Society two-year member; all-conference hockey; team MVP hockey; letter winner in tennis, hockey, and soccer. Austin High School 2016 Homecoming King, and Rotary Student of the Month.

Thoughts on your educational experience so far: I am a firm believer in challenging yourself on a consistent basis and throughout my education thus far I have been given the opportunity to do just that. I may not ever need to know how to do honors calculus in my future but taking honors classes and Post Secondary Enrollment Options classes have taught me many things such as work ethic, time management, and how to use your resources when you need help.

Plans for the future: Next year I plan to attend Iowa State University in Ames. My plan is to double major in finance and sales or finance and marketing.

Thoughts about your experience with Rotary Club: Rotary really was a great experience. I enjoyed meeting many of our community’s leaders as well as having an excellent lunch (It certainly tops the school lunches). I am so thankful to have been chosen to sit in with the Rotary Club and I really enjoyed my time there.

Gabriella Marconi

Activities and hobbies: I am a part of the Austin Packer Dance Team, and I have been for four years. I am also the president of DEC and vice president of Youth Leadership. I am involved in National Honor Society and Austinaires.

Awards and recognitions: I have qualified for DECA state for three years in a row, as well as dance state for four years in a row. I have also gotten the Big 9 Spotlight on Scholarship for obtaining a 3.0 GPA or higher during a varsity level sport. I also received the Big 9 Scholar Athlete Honor Roll. I won the Magnum Opus art award in 2015. In eighth grade I also qualified for the Access Scholarship.

Thoughts on your educational experience so far: I believe school is very important and through my years of taking Advanced Placement and honors-level classes, I think I’ve been able to gain great skills aside from just learning the material presented to me. This has taught me time management and perseverance, as well as learning to ask for help when I need it. I think the classes offered have given me wonderful opportunities and prepared me well enough to be successful in the future.

Plans for the future: Next year I plan on attending Loyola University in Chicago and majoring in business and marketing. I also plan on studying abroad in Italy for a semester to learn from their culture and learn the language. I hope to work as a marketing manager in a large company one day.

Thoughts about your experience with the Rotary Club: I thought Rotary was a great organization that provided a lot of useful information. It was a great way to see what was going on in the community and it allowed me to meet more people that are involved. I am very honored that I was selected to go.