Blair High School Valedictorian, Jonathan Ong, is heading to the College of Engineering at the University of Southern California (USC) and is a candidate for the prestigious International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBD).

Jonathan has always excelled in mathematics, taking AP Calculus in ninth grade and completing several courses at Pasadena City College (PCC) where he began concurrent enrollment classes in the summer before ninth grade. Last summer, Jonathan participated in California Institute of Technology’s Summer Research Connection by working in a lab modeling bacteria metabolism.

Outside the lab and/or classroom, Jonathan dove into several extracurricular activities. A part of the Blair water polo community since sixth grade, he began practicing with the team before he could compete and was also the manager of the Girls’ Water Polo Team at Blair Middle School. He was the Blair High School Boys’ Team Captain for the last three years and even though a shoulder injury derailed his final season, he did not allow the injury to drag him down. He enjoys playing flute and was a member of the Blair Jazz Band. He was also a member of the Associated Student Body (ASB) throughout high school and rose through the ranks from ASB Freshman Class Secretary to President as a senior.

Jonathan received his Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish but also speaks Chinese. A member of the National Honor Society, he is also the recipient of several awards, including the IB Learner Profile Award, the Knowledgeable Viking Award, and the IB Outstanding Student Award. He received the PTSA Scholarship ($500), ASB’s Jimmy Cetina Award ($50) and the Joyce Davis Memorial Scholarship ($2500).

His teachers and peers have commended Jonathan for his energy, positive attitude and time management skills, never missing an IB deadline. Jonathan received a merit scholarship to study Computer Science at USC and he hopes to eventually become an engineer in the field of Artificial Intelligence. Congratulations Jonathan!

PUSD Senior Kennedy Hackett is headed to Harvard University this fall after becoming the first student to graduate from John Muir High School (JMHS) Early College Magnet with a high school diploma and an Associate of Arts degree in Natural Science from Pasadena City College through a joint partnership between the college and Pasadena Unified School District.

A scholar, leader, and athlete, Kennedy has a 4.2 GPA and is described by teachers and counselors as “persistent, charismatic, and ambitious.” Her academic achievements and involvement in the school and community are extensive.

“Dual enrollment at John Muir has allowed me to broaden my academic horizons,” said Kennedy. “Through Pasadena City College, I was able to cultivate new interests by taking classes that aren’t traditionally offered at my high school. Due to the rigor that dual enrollment classes provided to me, I now feel prepared to take my knowledge and apply that to my courses at the university level.”

The partnership puts college courses on the high school campus; John Muir students can simply walk across the quad to a self-contained PCC building and take college-level courses such as Psychology, Humanities, Speech, African-American History, Introduction to American Government and Politics, or Statistics during the school day.

Extracurricular activities demonstrate her growth mindset, tenacity, and persistence. “She exemplifies what we look for in student leaders,” says Early College Magnet Counselor Alejandra Diaz.

Kennedy’s involvement in school includes: Associated Student Body Vice President, 2022 Class Treasurer, the pep squad, track and field, and the Black Student Union.

Outside of school, she volunteers as a tutor for children in kindergarten through 8th grade. Kennedy describes this as the most meaningful experience in her life because she can see younger children’s academic growth and because it makes her proud that they see her as a role model.

Kennedy has received numerous awards and accolades, from the school Honor Roll to Rotary Youth Leadership Awards. Kennedy was featured in Pasadena Now for her outstanding work and she is the recipient of the Student Spotlight Award through the California Coalition of Early and Middle College.

The courses that Kennedy has taken at John Muir and at Pasadena City College have propelled her to become an agent of change for social issues that are impacting the John Muir school community. Kennedy was courageous in bringing about issues of social justice and change. She is passionate about helping other students become successful. As a student in John Muir’s Engineering and Environmental Science Academy, Kennedy studied Introduction to Engineering during her Freshman year, Principles of Engineering as a Sophomore, Digital Electronics in her Junior year, and Engineering Design and Development during her Senior year. She also received valuable work-based experience as an intern at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Aspires West Tutoring Center.

As an Early College Student Ambassador, Kennedy attends community functions to promote on-campus opportunities for fellow students. Because of the commitment of student ambassadors like Kennedy, JMHS has been recognized as an Early College Magnet and named “Best Choice School" by Pasadena Weekly. As a result, the school has seen an increase in enrollment and has become more diverse in terms of race and socioeconomics.

Marshall Fundamental graduate Benjamin Karish is heading to the University of California, Berkeley, after becoming a Class of 2022 Valedictorian. Ben’s academic career soared as a Marshall Eagle since 9th grade. He attended Willard Elementary for grades K-5.

At Marshall, Ben has been active in Frisbee Club, Math Club, Chess Club, Jewish Club, and was the Science Bowl Captain his junior and senior years. Ben played Junior Varsity Tennis as a freshman but turned his attention to running after that, participating in cross country his remaining years of high school and Track & Field his sophomore and senior year. Ben placed third in the Mission Valley League Finals in the 800-meter run in April.

In his spare time, Ben has volunteered in the chess class at the Pasadena Educational Foundation’s Summer Enrichment Program and has worked as a counselor at Tom Sawyer Camp.

Ben is recognized by the College Board as an AP Scholar with Distinction and is a 2022 National Merit Commended Scholar. He will be studying engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. Congratulations, Ben!

Class of 2022 Valedictorian Kareem Shaheen is bound for Yale University. His academic career flourished at Sierra Madre Middle School and then at Marshall Fundamental where he became involved in several extracurricular activities including the National Honor Society, the Journalism Club, the Mock Trial Team, the Science Bowl Team, the Astrophysics Club, Math Club, Model United Nations, Science National Honor Society, and the Middle Eastern Club.

Kareem has received numerous awards and has been recognized by the College Board as an AP Scholar with Distinction. He is also an AP Capstone Diploma Candidate for his research topic, “Atoms in Accounting, Entanglement in Emails, and Qubits in Cryptography: The Danger to the Digital World.”

Through the Caltech Summer Research Connection, Kareem conducted scientific research at a Caltech lab with a student-teacher group under a professor’s guidance. Kareem represented Marshall as the American Legion California Boys State Delegate and he won the Legal Advocacy Competition. He was also awarded the Alan I. Rothberg Award for Outstanding Student Pretrial Defense as part of the Mock Trial Competition in the fall. He works as a volunteer at Methodist Hospital Arcadia and the Burbank Islamic Center.

He has received acceptances from Yale University, Cal Poly Pomona, UC Berkeley (Regents’ & Chancellor's Scholar), UCLA (Big Bang Theory Scholar), UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, Emory University, Rice University, and Rochester Institute of Technology. He plans to major in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Yale. Congratulations, Kareem!

Pasadena High School graduate Tosten Pearson is heading to Brown University this fall after becoming a PHS Class of 2022 Valedictorian. A writer for his school newspaper since freshman year, his academic success story will go down in the pages of Bulldog history. For the last year, he has also led the school’s “Pasadena Chronicle” as Editor-in-Chief.

As a student interested in pursuing an education and career in STEM, he has also served as co-founder and vice president of the PHS Science Olympiad Club/Team for all four years.

“I cannot begin to express the full extent of my gratitude towards the Bulldog community, including its teachers, counselors, administrators, staff, and students,” Tosten said.

Tosten was named a National Merit Scholarship winner and was awarded the UC Berkeley Regents’ and Chancellor’s Scholarship. He is a recipient of the Pasadena High School Class of 1967 Scholarship and the Pasadena Educational Foundation 2022 Pasadena High School Wark Scholarship.

Outside of the classroom. Tosten has volunteered at the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens for over two-and-half-years, accruing over 170 hours of community service. During his summers, he has interned through the California Institute of Technology’s Summer Research Connection program and has taken multiple classes at Pasadena City College.

In addition to Brown, Tosten was accepted at UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, Occidental College, Middlebury College, Amherst College, Georgetown University, Lewis and Clark College, and Brown University.

He will have a concentration in Chemistry. However, he is also interested in exploring various disciplines of engineering through Brown’s Open Curriculum and plans to continue learning Mandarin Chinese. Congratulations Tosten!