O’Hara senior addresses archdiocese honors convocation
PHILADELPHIA » The Archdiocese of Philadelphia celebrated its 38th annual Academic Honors Convocation at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul on Thursday, May 18. The event honored graduating seniors from 33 Archdiocesan and private Catholic high schools for their academic excellence.
The students, who are ranked in the top 3 percent of their senior class, were honored for their academic success and dedication to their studies. This year 155 students were included in the elite group according to their cumulative ranking at the end of the first semester of their senior year.
Killeen McCans, a senior from Cardinal O’Hara High School, was the 2017 student speaker. She was chosen from among seven student honorees who submitted essays and auditioned this year. Killeen is a Neumann Scholar and a Notre Dame Summer Scholar. She participates in a number of extracurricular activities including the “Danny Hammond Dance Marathon,” National Honor Society, Varsity Soccer, and Community Service Corps. She will attend the University of Notre Dame in the fall.
Recipients from Delaware County high schools are:
• Academy of Notre Dame de Namur: Julia Walton; Jane Overend; Merry Gu; Kathleen O’Connor
• Archbishop Carroll High School: Isabelle M. Rullo (Neumann Scholar); David J. Fohner; Katherine A. Hageney; Gabrielle P. Lyons; Zachary A. Campbell; Kevin A. Patzuk; Madison E. Bristowe
• Cardinal O’Hara High School: Frances Claire Schueren; Mary Killeen McCans (Neumann Scholar); Gavin Inglis (Neumann Scholar); Emily Ann Markley; William John Issertell; Edward Justus Issertell; Schola Eburuoh; Mary Cecilia Sheehan
• Country Day School of the Sacred Heart: Elizabeth Clare McLaughlin
• Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Prendergast High School: Riley M. Dolan; Emily R. Rockenbach; Elysia A. Konecny; Casey L. Rafferty; Jing L. Zheng; John F. Tercha
Students identified as a Neumann Scholar are in the Connelly Foundation Neumann Scholars Program. Initiated in 1995, this scholarship program identifies academically talented eighth grade students through an independently administered competitive examination and provides four year scholarships to attend any archdiocesan high school.