News

Martin Coleman, Nhyira Nkansah, Joseph Mitri earn Student of the Year honors

CHELMSFORD, MA (June 2, 2022) – Senior Martin Coleman was named the Student of the Year for Whittier House while seniors Nhyira Nkansah and Joseph Mitri were named the students of the year for Hawthorne and Emerson houses as Chelmsford High School announced its Class of 2023 Senior Award recipients Thursday, May 25, at the Carl J. Rondina Performing Arts Center.

The honor was one of six awards for Mr. Coleman, the Salutatorian for the Class of 2023 who will attend Dartmouth College in the fall. He was also a recipient of the Gold Scholar Award (presented to the top five scholars in the Class of 2023) and the Advanced Placement Diploma (presented to students who earn a score of 3 or higher on AP exams and portfolios).

Additionally, Mr. Coleman earned the PRIDE Award for exemplifying the values of Chelmsford Public Schools (perseverance, respect, integrity, dedication, and empathy); the Lion Spirit of Community Award; as well as the Science Department Award.

Ms. Nkansah, who performed the “All Things End” by Hozier at the ceremony, took home three major honors including the Daughters of the American Revolution Massachusetts Chapter Good Citizen Nominee, and the Yearbook Above and Beyond Award for her service as the co-editor-in-chief.

Ms. Nkansah will attend UMass Lowell in the fall.

Mr. Mitri, who overcame Hodgkin’s lymphoma as a freshman, was also a recipient of the PRIDE Award alongside Mr. Coleman. Mr. Mitri is a decorated two-sport athlete (football and wrestling) who was involved in many campus activities including serving as a board member of CHS’s chapter of the National English Honor Society as well as a member of the Dean’s Council and Freshman Mentors.

Mr. Mitri will attend Boston University.

Kaitlyn Kaminuma was the recipient of five awards, including the Gold Medal Scholar award, the Society of Women Engineers of Boston Certificate of Merit and the Andrew Pasquale Honorary Math Award.

An accomplished violinist, Ms. Kaminuma also received the National School Orchestra Award and the CHS Music Department Award. This summer, she will embark on a U.S. tour with the National Youth Orchestra USA, opening on July 13 at Groton Hill in Groton, Mass.

Ms. Kaminuma will attend Emory University this fall.

Prateek Motagi, the valedictorian of the Class of 2023, was the recipient of four major honors including the Gold Medal, Advanced Placement Diploma, Student Council Above and Beyond Award, and the Lion Service Award for Hawthorne House. Mr. Motagi will continue his studies at New York University.

Narissa AlDayaa also took home multiple honors including the Leaders in Motion Everywhere (LIME) Above and Beyond Award and the Advanced Placement Diploma. A saxophonist, she was also the recipient of the Director’s Award for Band and the Language Opportunity Coalition Biliteracy Achievement Award for aptitude in French.

Ms. AlDayaa will study at George Washington.

Jamie Garber received the Musical Theatre Award as well as both the Chelmsford Telemedia Service Award and CHSTv Department Award. She was also the recipient of the PRIDE Award and will attend Emerson College.

Lea Bosch also took home four honors: the Lion Spirit of Community Award, Seal of Biliteracy in French and Spanish, as well as the Andrew Pasquale Honorary Math Award (with Ms. Kaminuma) and the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Above and Beyond Award.

Ms. Bosch will study at McGill University.

The full list of CHS’s award recipients is as follows:

Class of 2023 Awards – May 25, 2023

Carl J. Rondina Performing Arts Center

Students of the Year

• Joseph Mitri (Emerson House)
• Nhyria Nkansah (Hawthorne House)
• Martin Coleman (Whittier House)

Gold Medal Scholars (Recognition of the top scholars of the Class of 2023)

• Kaitlyn Kaminuma – 5^th in class
• Emma Taylor – 4^th in class
• Divya Sambasivan – 3^rd in class
• Martin Coleman – Salutatorian
• Prateek Motagi – Valedictorian

2023 Class Representatives Above and Beyond Award

• Ruth Njuguna

LIME (Leaders in Motion Everywhere) Above and Beyond Award

• Narissa AlDayaa
• Rachel O’Brien

Advanced Placement Diploma Candidates

• Rishi Ajmera
• Narissa AlDayaa
• Martin Coleman
• Carys Evans
• Akhila Garre
  Malena Lombardo
• Prateek Motagi
• Divya Sambasivan

Rebello Scholarship

• Sharon Chen

Art Achievement Awards

• Digital Art: Hope Zhao
• Studio Art: Isabelle Boivin

Emerson House Students of the Month

• September: Rishi Ajmera & Arjun Lingala
• October: Hope Hebert & Joseph Mitri
• November: Ethan DeHaan & Shamoyl Vaid
• December: Jessica O’Brien & Rachel O’Brien
• January: Dean Allen & Neel Verma
• February: Diana Snider & David Barber
• March: Charlotte Kennedy & Ashleigh Sorbet
• April: Olivia Hall & Maeve Slattery
• May: Emily Hilton & Hope Zhao
• June: Torrance Borletto-McCray & Sriya Yerasu

Child Development/Community Education Award

(For excellence in the Early Childhood program)

• Laura Solomon

Louis Armstrong Jazz Award

• Brian Miller

John Phillip Sousa Award

• Sarah Roch

Director’s Award for Band

• Narissa AlDayaa

Director’s Award for Chorus

• Madison Connors

National School Choral Award

• Eleanor Desmarais

Director’s Award for Orchestra

• Jacquelyn Brennan-Barbeau

National School Orchestra Award

• Kaitlyn Kaminuma

Hawthorne House Students of the Month

• September: Prateek Motagi & Divya Sambasivan
• October: Kaitlyn Kaminuma & Remore Serra
• November: Akhila Garre & Emma Taylor
• December: Nhyira Nkansah & Nathaniel Murray
• January: Lea Bosch & Jack Dorsey
• February: Narissa AlDayaa
• March: Amelia Kelley & Cole Pelkey
• April: Abigail Kamara & Liam Martin
• May: Molly Fox & Manasa Praveen
• June: Manny Marshall & Annemarie Tyros

Student Council Above and Beyond Award

• Prateek Motagi

Commonwealth Award for Exemplary Community Service

(Awarded to a high school junior or senior who has distinguished his/herself based on community service activities)

• Molly Fox

Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) Above and Beyond Award

• Rishi Ajmera

Lion Spirit of Community Award

(Those who demonstrate outstanding commitment to serving our community and are hereby recognized as the top student volunteers at CHS)

Emerson House

• Ethan DeHaan
• Emily Hilton
• Diana Snider
• Shamoyl Vaid
• Sriya Yerasu
• Hope Zhao

Hawthorne House

• Tanya Banerjee
• Lea Bosch
• Molly Fox
• Nhyira Nkansah
• Emma Taylor
• Hannah Wolman

Whittier House

• Martin Coleman
• Jared Guerin
• Taylor Kiggins
• Elizabeth Onyeabor
• Julia Williams
• Clara Wong

Society of Women Engineers Boston- Certificates of Merit

• Honors: Kaitlyn Kaminuma
• High Honors: Divya Sambasivan
• Highest Honors: Emma Taylor

Michael Tate Honorary Awards for Science Excellence

• Hope Hebert
• David Barber

Ralph Sherwood Honorary Science Award

• Tabor Morin

Interact Club Above and Beyond Award

• Sara Perkins

Massachusetts Foreign Language Association Awards

(Conferred upon the student who has demonstrated the highest achievement in the most advanced course of each language taught)

• ASL: Catherine Quinn
• French: Rachel O’Brien
• Spanish: Andrew Peterson

Seal of Biliteracy Awards

(Recognizing seniors who have demonstrated proficiency in English and a world language)

• Isabelle Boivin (French)
• Lea Bosch (French & Spanish)
• Ayranis De La Cruz (Spanish)
• Leticia Goncalves (Spanish)
• Abhiram Nisankararao (Spanish)
• Sara Perkins (Spanish)
• Emilee Sousa (Spanish)
• Waka Umaoka (Japanese)
  Hannah Wolman (Spanish)
• Alizee Bosch (Spanish)
• Sabrina Boutlane (Spanish)
• Chance Drewicz (Spanish)
• Isabella Madrid (Spanish)
• Analia O’Connor (Spanish)
• Andrew Peterson (Spanish)
• Ananya Sripathi (Spanish & Hindi)
• Clara Wong (Mandarin Chinese)

Language Opportunity Coalition Biliteracy Achievement and Attainment Awards

• Narissa AlDayaa (French)
• Alizee Bosch (French)
• Jared Guerin (Spanish)
• Gabriela Vasilakis (Spanish)

Whittier House Students of the Month

• September: Martin Coleman & Keval Patel
• October: Clara Wong & Jared Guerin
• November: Taylor Kiggins & Rishi Madivada
• December: Julia Williams & Jash Bhut
• January: Madison Connors & Bennett Prees
• February: Malena Lombardo & Jonah Abraham
• March: Elizabeth Onyeabor & Ryan Clark
• April: Chance Drewicz & Analia O’Connor-Carinao
• May: Laura Solomon & Braydon Gray
• June: Waka Umaoka & Maya Aggarwal

Theatre Guild Above and Beyond Awards

• Laura Solomon
• Hope Hebert
• Jonathan Walsh
• Amanda Tran
• Janna Goodwin

Musical Theatre Award

• Jamie Garber

Andrew Pasquale Honorary Math Awards

• Kaitlyn Kaminuma
• Lea Bosch

Project Lead the Way Above and Beyond Awards

• Lea Bosch
• Jackson Uttecht

Robotics Above and Beyond Award

• Sarah Oakes

UMass Lowell Business School Award

• Brian Miller
• Eliana Parreira

Lions Locker School Store Award

• Catherine Latham

CHSTv Above and Beyond Award

• Emily Allen

Chelmsford Telemedia Service Awards

• Jamie Garber
• Emily Allen
• Ryan Greene

Technology Trouble Shooting Above and Beyond Awards

• Sophie Russell
• Jessica O’Brien

Best Buddies Club Above and Beyond Award

• Roshni Patel

Science Team Above and Beyond Awards

• Rishi Madivada
• Sara Perkins
• Keeley Wilson

Math Team Above and Beyond Awards

• Rishi Madivada
• Jackson Uttecht

Yearbook Above and Beyond Award

• Nhyira Nkansah

Mock Trial Above and Beyond Awards

• Thomas Colpoys
• Ashleigh Sorbet

PRIDE Awards

(Students who have exemplified one or more of the attributes of our PRIDE values: Perseverance, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Empathy)

Emerson House

• Cooper Collins
• Maria Galdio da Silva
• Dominick Flores
• Olivia Hall
• Neakon Kargar
• Pavlo Kolesov
• Joseph Mitri
• Molly Sneeringer
• Morgan Tarini

Hawthorne House

• Emily Allen
• Sabrina Boutlane
• Jamie Garber
• Catherine Latham
• Isaac Ntambwe
• Koryn Perry
• Emilee Sousa
• Arthur Torosyan

Whittier House

• Owen Boilard
• Martin Coleman
• Madison Connors
• Alyssa Dang
• Garret Kelly
• Kaitlyn Malo
• Sarah Roch
• Aidan Wagner

Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators Association Student Achievement Award

(In recognition of outstanding contributions to the school)

• Elizabeth Onyeabor

Lion Service Awards

Emerson House

• • Grace Campo
  • Lorena Machado
  • Katherine Sanroma
  • Ananya Sripathi
  • Laasya Vemperala
  • Caitlin Walsh

Hawthorne House

• • Kartikey Brahmbhatt
  • Claire Cassely
  • Akhila Garre
  • Amelia Kelley
  • Isabella Mirasolo
  • Prateek Motagi

Whittier House

• • Ryan Clark
  • Georgia Horan
  • Dennis Johnson
  • Sarah Oakes
  • Grace Saba
  • Alexander Wong

Daughters of the American Revolution-Massachusetts Chapter Good Citizen Nominee

• Nhyira Nkansah

CHS Department Awards

• Manasa Praveen (Business Education)
• Jamie Garber (CHSTv)
• Abhiram Nisankararao (Computer Science)
• Kenneth Damon (English)
• Madison Connors (Health Education)
• Keval Patel (Mathematics)
• Kaitlyn Kaminuma (Music)
• Kyle Martines (Physical Education)
• Martin Coleman (Science)
• Ashleigh Sorbet (Social Studies)
• Sophie Russell (Technology-Architecture)
• Tabor Morin (Technology-Engineering)
• Jared Guerin (Visual Art)
• Lea McGuigan (World Language)

About Chelmsford Public Schools

The Chelmsford Public School District provides all students with multiple pathways to optimize their own potential for academic excellence, leadership, and social and emotional wellness. The mission of the Chelmsford Public Schools is to educate, engage, prepare, and empower well-rounded and knowledgeable learners to PERSEVERE through challenges, demonstrate RESPECT and INTEGRITY in their words and actions, are DEDICATED to their community, and display EMPATHY as global citizens while discovering and pursuing their full potential. This PRIDE-driven culture enables all members of the school community to support the growth and development of students. For more information, please visit www.chelmsford.k12.ma.us.