Hannah L. Perez

Activities/hobbies: I’m in Art Club; I like to read, write, paint and draw in my spare time.

Awards/recognitions: I have received several awards in the AHS Art Show, including Student Choice, Best of Show, Magnum Opus, and Award of Excellence across categories such as acrylic painting, watercolor, pen and ink watercolor, Mohawk, Ofrenda, etc.; I have received the rating of superior (20/20) at the Minnesota State High School League’s Section Visual Arts Festival twice. One was in the drawing category, and the other was in the painting category within which I also received Best of Show.

Thoughts on your educational experience so far: My educational experience so far has been incredibly stressful. Nonetheless, I am very grateful for all of the opportunities that my education has given me. I’ve learned a lot of important things, and most of those things that I’ll carry with me forever are life lessons.

Plans for the future: The main thing that I’m focusing on right now is getting into college. My dream school is the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. I don’t know if I’ll end up going there, but I know that wherever I end up I’ll be studying art. I plan to earn a bachelor’s degree and after I accomplish that I want to explore as many artist jobs as I please.

Thoughts about your experience with the Rotary Club: The Rotary Club was a really interesting experience. I didn’t even know it existed until I was invited to come to the meetings for a month. The members all seemed really nice and I enjoyed listening to their programs. I feel like I learned a lot about our community and the things that people are doing in order to improve it.

Trent Brown

Activities/Hobbies: Football, basketball, track and field, boating, band, choir, Austinaires, National Honor Society, hunting and fishing.

Awards and Special Recognitions: Two-year captain of the boys track and field team; two-time track and field MVP; 2015 All-State Choir; two-time academic letter earner; 10-time Spotlight on Scholarship award earner; nine-time superior rating earned at Solo and Ensemble Contest; 2016 Best in Site Winner for Solo and Ensemble Contest.

Thoughts on Educational Experience: As of late, education, as it has been presented to me, has become less about learning and more about temporary subordination. There has been too great of an emphasis placed on short-term performance rather than long-term impact; a trend that is troubling to say the least. I think this stems from an increased use of technology, a greater expectation of self-reliance on learning material, and most of all, the underestimation of the impact of a personal relationship between an educator and a student. I wish I could have experienced education that got back to basics more so than the one I received. This is not to say that I am not thankful for the work of many of my educators or for the opportunities which were presented to me, but rather to point out that newly-practiced methods of education perhaps undermine the true values of education itself.

Plans for the Future: Go to a four-year university and pursue a degree in engineering or architecture.

Thoughts on Experience with Rotary: Rotary was a nice place to meet with various members of the community who concern themselves with serving others and solving problems that face the community. There were also several great presentations I was able to listen to that highlighted some area issues as well as what is being done to solve them. Overall, I was very pleased with the club and its members and was glad to be a part of it for a short time.