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Fauquier future leaders finalists
AG experience boosts homeschoolerLevi Leppke is a home-schooled senior at Lileemzo High School, a status which he has found to be the biggest challenge in his life.
Despite common perceptions that home-schooled students lack friends and extra-curricular activities, Leppke said, "...even though I am home-schooled, I have reached out and overcome this fact and am active in my community and have made many friends.
"This has been both a challenge and a blessing for me. It challenged me to reach out and not stay in my own little bubble. The fact that I had to reach out has made me a better, more confident person."
The 17-year-old has operated audio-visual equipment for Sunday morning services at Broad Run Baptist Church. He has participated in youth group trips to Louisiana to help with Katrina recovery efforts.
Leppke went on a mission trip to Croatia in 2005 to minister to the local Bayash gypsy population. While there, he distributed coats and shoes to the village children.
And on the home front, he has packed meals for the homeless in Culpeper.
While a resident of Midland, he has also volunteered with the Culpeper Farm Tour, The Culpeper County Fair Antique Tractor Pull and the Virginia AG Expo. He won first place in the 2006 Culpeper County Farm Fair Tractor Driving competition.
Leppke works on his family farm and has won numerous awards for goat herdsmanship in county and state level competitions. He has also held many leadership positions with Culpeper County 4H, winning the organization's achievement award in 2007 and the leadership award in 2008.
Included in the National Dean's List and the Phi Theta Kappa Society, the home-schooler has been a dual-enrolled student at Lord Fairfax Community College for two years, maintaining a 4.0 GPA.
Leppke has also participated on the Fresta Valley FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognitions of Science and Technology) Robotics Team for four years, winning various top regional recognitions for CAD design. According to Leppke, the organization strives "to get young kids excited and involved with engineering."
He is planning on majoring in mechanical engineering at LeTourneau University in Longview, Tx. In addition to participating in robotics competitions, Leppke was influenced on his major course decision by the fact that his grandfather was a mechanical engineer and his father is an electrical engineer.
He is the son of Brent and Shari Leppke.
Acting brings student out of his shell
When William "Will" Mackie-Jenkins, a senior at Highland School, started high school, he kept mostly to himself.
"I was wary to try new things or to step out of my comfort zone. I overcame this extreme shyness in my sophomore year when I auditioned for the Highland players' production of 'Noises Off,' Mackie-Jenkins said. "I was nervous for the audition, but once I had been cast, I slowly came out of my shell."
He added, "It was this one experience that led me to find my true interest in the arts in high school, and to this day I am glad I auditioned for the play."
The 18-year-old also developed a strong interest in music. Not only does he teach guitar lessons and perform in bands, he practices the bass, piano, voice, cello, percussion and mandolin for a minimum of 22 hours a week.
These experiences led the formerly shy Mackie-Jenkins to be team captain of the varsity tennis team, member of the varsity golf team, peer jury member of the school's honor council and columnist and secondary editor for the school newspaper.
He finds time to volunteer for various community activities, such as Mary's Family and Special Olympics. With a GPA of 3.93, Mackie-Jenkins has been on the high honor roll for eight consecutive semesters, his entire tenure in high school.
He also finds time to help out on his family's beef cattle farm.
"I have enjoyed the honor of assisting my father in caring for livestock and helping to produce beef," he said.
The senior is undecided at this time which university he will choose, and his decision will impact his choice of a major. Mackie-Jenkins would love to major in guitar, but he also leans toward an English or theater arts major. He hopes someday to compose and conduct musical performances.
He is the son of Lora Mackie and Warren Jenkins.
Mastering the juggling act
Joseph "Joe" Johnson seems to have accomplished what many attempt, but cannot do.
"I balanced an aggressive academic course load with both school sports and travel sport activities," said the Highland School senior.
"The most influential aspect of [my high school career] was my freshman year playing on varsity soccer. It forced me to be more aggressive and take charge. I became more motivated to take more difficult courses,” Johnson said.
"I began taking more risks, trying to constantly improve. If you don't improve, someone else will surpass you."
Although he saw maintaining the balance as a challenge, he was a Founders Scholar at Highland for three years, recognized for his academics, athletics and citizenship.
Ranked number two in his class for all four years in high school, he received academic excellence awards in physics, pre-calculus and Latin.
Johnson served as school newspaper editor for two years and vice-president of the National Honor Society his senior year.
As a well-rounded student, Johnson has been very active in community service, collecting clothing for the homeless, books for beginning learners in Head Start and Bright Star and get well packages for wounded U.S. troups in Iraq.
Participating in varsity swimming, lacrosse and soccer, the young athlete won several awards in all three sports. "I have played ever since I was a little boy. My older brother coached me when I was three years old," Johnson said.
Not only did he play school sports, but he played soccer with the Manassas Area Travel Team. At Highland, he used his athletic expertise to manage the girls' varsity soccer team for two years.
While Johnson hopes to continue intramural soccer while a student at The University of Virginia, his academic studies will be in mechanical engineering, following his father's profession.
He is the son of Dale and Jodi Johnson.
Student overcomes reading challenges
A senior at Highland School, Candace Pearson is accustomed to dealing with challenges. Citing a "phonemic awareness issue," which resulted in reading difficulties, the teenager took years of instruction to work past her "setback."
"My former weakness, however, became my greatest strength as I became top of my class in reading and writing," Pearson said. She took two Advanced Placement English courses and attended the Governor's School for Humanities.
Her academic awards have included excellence in AP history, pre-calculus, and Latin, distinguished as cum laude in the 2007 National Latin Examination.
She also excelled in sports and the arts. Starting out in junior varsity basketball, Pearson also played varsity field hockey for four years, serving as the team captain and winning the Coach's Award in 2008.
Taking oil painting classes for six years, Pearson has displayed her work in the Manassas Art Gallery and has previously won a first place ribbon for a black-and-white portrait in the Fauquier County Fair.
Community service has been a high priority for Pearson. She has given almost 250 hours of service to various organizations, including Mary's Family.
Showing leadership capabilities, the Highland student served as her freshman class vice-president and as the sophomore president.
She has been a leader in her church's youth group at Leeds Episcopal Church for two years, and was head of Highland's Random Acts of Kindness Club this year.
Pearson also co-produced a school fashion show, raising over $1,000 for the school prom. Also, this year, she organized the school's Unity Day "to encourage bonding between the grades."
She plans to major in environmental studies at The University of Virginia. Having been involved in local environmental activities, she has become interested in policy-making and plans to incorporate political science into her college studies.
She is the daughter of Gary and Lois Pearson.
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