By Morgan Thaler
Staff Writer
Noel Castellanos cemented his place in Mira Costa history on May 31 when he became the 2011-12 Student of the Year.
According to Vice Principal Jaime Mancilla, qualities that define the Student of the Year include being well-rounded, participating in off-campus activities and making an impact on Costa’s campus. According to Principal Dr. Ben Dale, Castellanos was worthy of receiving this honor.
“I am so proud of Noel,” Dale said. “He is very deserving of the honor. The process [of selecting Student of the Year] was smooth and well done. He was our selection from a very competitive pool of nominees.”
In order to be eligible for receiving the Student of the Year award, senior nominees had to have a GPA in the tenth percentile. Staff members cast the initial vote, and the 11 departments selected the winner.
Along with Castellanos, seniors Blake Rebak, Eli Rivas, Richard Wedeen and Michael de Virgilio were also nominees for Student of the Year.
“I am totally happy for Noel,” Rivas said. “He totally deserves it because he works extremely hard all of the time. Everyone absolutely loves him.”
Before Castellanos took the stage at the All Awards Ceremony to accept his award, his mother, Maria, narrated a slide-show that detailed his childhood and his high school accomplishments.
“I was so happy and proud of Noel,” Maria Castellanos said. “I still feel emotional about his past accomplishments. He was surrounded by many good people at Mira Costa that have taught him well and were always there for him when he needed help.”
Over the course of his high school career, Castellanos has taken 10 AP classes including Spanish, biology, U.S. history and physics and was on the football and track team. He was also an active member in Lend a Hand Club, the Latino Scholars Union and Food Critics Club.
Despite all of his activities, Castellanos managed to balance his school work, sports and extraciriculars, while also finding time to spend with his friends.
“I was raised to always be responsible, and managing time is part of being responsible,” Castellanos said. “Nothing is more important than spending time with people you care about. I always made room for my friends and family.”
According to Castellanos, history teacher Bill Fauver and English teacher Wendy Thornton had the largest impact on not only his education, but on other aspects of his life as well. According to Fauver, Castellanos is deserving of the Student of the Year honor.
“Noel is an excellent student,” Fauver siad. “He is accurate, polite and everything any teacher can ask for in a student. I am ecstatic that Noel won the award. I’ve been here a long time, and I can’t think of anyone off the top of my head who has the complete package like Noel does.”
At the All Awards Assembly, Dale announced Castellanos as the 2011-2012 Student of the Year.
“To be honest, I was frozen solid when I first heard my mother’s voice in the auditorium at the ceremony,” Castellanos said. “I knew at that moment that I had done it, but I couldn’t believe it. I never knew how it felt to cry of happiness until that day.”
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