Nazareth Academy: Celebrating Academic Excellence

Nazareth Academy is proud to recognize students who have earned academic recognition at the state and national level.

“These academic honors are an impressive indication of our students' willingness to challenge themselves and their ability to thrive at the collegiate level. We continue to be very proud of their accomplishments as well as of the faculty who work so hard to prepare them in our Pillar of Scholarship.” — Principal Hawkins

Congratulations Recognized Students

National & State Merit Recognition

Highlighting the top tier of academic performers in the country and state.

National Merit Scholarship Program

National Merit Finalist: Congratulations to Sam Wilda ’26, who earned a perfect score on the 2024 PSAT. Sam is now among the top 1% of seniors nationwide and is being considered for over 7,500 National Merit Scholarships.
Commended Scholars: We recognize Mark Rovano and Roxanne Stasch, Class of 2026, for their exceptional academic promise, ranking among the top 34,000 students in the nation.

Illinois State Scholars (Class of 2026)

The following 40 students represent the top 10% of high school seniors in Illinois, chosen based on a combination of exemplary ACT/SAT scores and class rank: John Allegretti, Sophia Anderson, Eddie Austin, Connor Beata, Ava Berner, Brendan Boyd, Maggie Broderick, Max Bucur, Nora Dalton, Alexa De La Cerda, Gia DeFalco, Maura DeFauw, Grace Degnan, James Furlong, Elena Garcia, Grace Gravante, Matthew Hounihan, Thomas Hubert, Gabriella Imbarrato, Griffin Kuhlman, Bobby Labuda, Timothy Lopez, Ben Lukes, Olivia Mulcahy, Grayson Musker, Max Nemeth, Luke Page, Michael Ramaglia, Mark Rovano, Carson Ryan, Alyssa Salgado, Jack Siffermann, Will Siffermann, Ashley Snyder, Roxanne Stasch, Lila Suda, Beth Surowiec, Greta Sznewajs, Kerem Tokdemir, Sam Wilda.

Illinois State Seal of Biliteracy

30 members of our Class of 2026 have earned distinctions from the Illinois State Board of Education for their proficiency in multiple languages. The State Seal of Biliteracy is awarded to students who demonstrate a high level of proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking in another language in addition to English.

Seal of Biliteracy Honorees:

Spanish: Abigail Amaya, Safiyah Benitez, Nicholas Capodice, Jacqueline Castillo-López, Alexa De La Cerda, Thomas Delgado, Manuel Diaz, Arianna Espinosa, Grace Gravante, Juan Hernandez, Sophia Lopez, Alyssa Luna, Christopher Martinez, Eileen Raygoza, Alyssa Salgado, Denisse Toledano, Arantza Vazquez
Lithuanian: Faustas Antanaitis
Italian: Lilliana Cerruti
Turkish: Kerem Tokdemir
Polish: Tomek Wszelaki

Commendations Toward Biliteracy:

Spanish: Sophia Anderson, Edward Austin, Elena García, Jael Gonzalez, Laura Mora, Elise Ochoa, Daisy Quinonez, Violet Umbrases
French: Katerina Santen

A group of students, sitting on bleachers in a gymnasium setting, with banners and flags visible in the background. — *Nazareth Illinois State Scholars*

A group of students in school uniforms gathered around a table in a library, surrounded by bookshelves and framed artwork on the walls. — *Nazareth AP Scholars*

Advanced Placement (AP®) Excellence

Nazareth Academy is proud to be named to the College Board’s 2024-2025 AP® School Honor Roll (Silver Level).

AP® Results at a Glance (2026)
AP® Scholar Awards (2025)

AP® Results at a Glance (2026)

AP® Scholar Awards (2025)

Scholars with Distinction: (Average score of 3.5+ on 5+ exams)

Class of 2025: Erin Briars, Anna Bukovac, Isabel Cervantes, Alexis Connerty, Natalie Finnegan, Sofia Flores, Victoria Gonzalez, Sean Parkes, Clare Sandoval, Josephine Wagner.
Class of 2026: John Allegretti, Edward Austin, Brendan Boyd, Ben Lukes, Maxum Nemeth, Samuel Wilda.

Scholars with Honors: (Average score of 3.25+ on 4+ exams)

Class of 2025: Aidan Decker, Ava Distel, Mary Rita Hynes, Cassidy Murphy, William Smith, Isabel Strnic, Rhiann Zulfer.
Class of 2026: Sophia Anderson, Connor Beata, Ava Berner, Grace Gravante, Gabriella Imbarrato, Alyssa Selgado, Shannon Selover, William Siffermann, Elizabeth Surowiec.

65 Individual AP® Scholar Awards Earned

Creative Arts & Literacy

Celebrating the Voice and Vision of our student creators.

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

Ava Heniff: Gold Key (Painting), Silver Key (Mixed Media) — National finalist.
Roxanne Stasch: Silver Key (Poetry), Honorable Mention (Digital Painting).
Abigail Amaya: Silver Key (Drawing).
Elisa Drda & Sophia Martinez: Honorable Mentions.

Literary Publications

DePaul Blue Book: Artwork by Alexa de la Cerda ‘26 (gaze and relieve) was selected for this juried compilation (top 1% of national submissions).
Goulash Magazine: Nazareth’s student literary magazine earned "Excellent Distinction" from the National Council of Teachers of English (REALM contest).

NAMM 2026 Best Community For Music Education

For the third consecutive year, Nazareth Academy was selected as a NAMM 2026 Best Community For Music Education.

Competitive Academics

Achievement through classes and academic clubs.

History Fair State Qualifiers

Meghan Belling ‘27: State Qualifier (From West Pullman Park to the Special Olympics).
Gwen Passino & Ellie Fleischmann: Winners of the Minow Family Foundation Prize.
Additional Regional Qualifiers: Michela Russell, Cezanni Saldana, Alani Schwertfeger, Chase Connerty, Aidan Orta, Emma Martin, Erin Kennedy.

Math Team Regional Success

Jack O’Gorman: 3rd Place Individual (Algebra 2)
Matthew McDonnell: 6th Place Individual (Algebra 1)
Junior/Senior 8-Person Team: 3rd Place

College Board National Recognition Program

Celebrating 22 students who rank in the top 10% of test takers and maintain a GPA of B+ or higher.

School Recognition: Sophia Anderson, Connor Beata, Sofia Cuate, Nora Dalton, Grace Degnan, Nathan Hill, Mark Johannes, Bea Keenan, Jack O'Gorman, Gianna Parolin, Mark Rovano, Alyssa Salgado, Will Siffermann, Thomas Smith, Roxanne Stasch, Lila Suda, Greta Sznewajs, Kerem Tokdemir, Nicholas Turrise, Violet Umbrasas, Sam Wilda.

First-Generation Award: Emmanuel Carreno, Sofia Cuate, Violet Umbrasas.

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