The Hoosick Falls Central School District is proud to announce the top ten students for the Class of 2019. These students have displayed academic excellence and the District congratulates all of them for their hard work and commitment to academics.
Here are the Top Ten Scholars for the HFCS Class of 2019:
Valedictorian: Sam Richard
In addition to earning the top spot in his class with a grade point average of 98.3105, Sam is a scholar athlete, playing a sport for every season. His scholar athlete achievements include Varsity Wrestling Scholar Athlete – Grades 8-12, Varsity Football Scholar Athlete – Grade 11 and 12, and Varsity Baseball Scholar Athlete – Grades 10-12. In his high school career, Sam has displayed excellence both on and off the field, making the Principal’s List in grades 8-12, and earning an invite to the HFCS Summer Leadership Conference in grades 10-12. On the field, Sam was the Wasaren League All-Star for Varsity Wrestling in 10th grade, and as a junior he marked 100 Varsity Wrestling wins. He was also a three-time Varsity Wrestling Sectional qualifier. Outside of school, he was recognized as Fidelis Care’s WNYT Athlete of the Week his junior year. Also, he was Section 2, Class C 2nd Team Quarterback in his junior year. Sam served as a Varsity Football captain for his junior and senior years.
Sam did not slow down for his senior year, being named the recipient of the CASDA award recognized by the Capital District National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame. As a senior, he was again named the Section 2, Class C 1st Team Quarterback and played in the Section 2 Senior All-star game.
For grades 9 and 10 he was a member of the National Junior Honor Society. Sam also was a member of the Tech Club, serving as the Vice President his junior and senior years. He was in Earth Club his junior year, and inducted into the National Honor Society the same year. He served as Secretary for NHS his senior year, as well as participated in Varsity Club.
Sam supported his community through assisting Gabe Fisher’s Eagle Scout Project, working at the EC Scramble, building an equipment shed for the Youth Football Program, washing dishes at the St. Stanislaw Society, and working in the Learning Center at HFCS.
When asked about his outlook on the future, Sam said, “Although I may not have a precise plan for my future, I do have certain principles by which I want to live. I want to live a happy life in which I am not locked into a certain job or situation in which I am unhappy. That is the main reason why I am undecided in my major. I don’t want to make a choice now that will forever alter my life and force me into unwanted circumstances. I understand that people change with time. Therefore, I want to allow myself to have the opportunity to change and discover who I really am. So in essence, my philosophy for the future is to just wing it.”
In the fall, he will be attending Hamilton College and will enter as an undecided major. He will be playing for Hamilton’s football team.
Sam is the son of Rob and Lynn Richard of West Hoosick, and brother of Robbie, Thomas, and Alivia Richard of West Hoosick.
Salutatorian:
Ethan Michael Mattison
With a grade point average of 96.0847, Ethan Mattison is the Salutatorian for the class of 2019. He has a diverse high school resume and consistently demonstrated excellence in and out of the classroom. Ethan was a four-year Varsity Scholar Athlete in Wrestling, and a three-year scholar athlete in Soccer, serving as captain his senior year. He also was a member of the Trap Shooting Club, President of the Tech Club, and served as a class officer in the role of Historian. He is a member of the National Honor Society and also served that organization as Historian. He made the Principal’s List for all four years of high school.
Ethan is an ELKs International Scholarship semi-finalist, earning $4000, and the recipient of the QDMA $500 scholarship.
Outside of school, Ethan is a member of 4-H, the Quality Deer Management Association, and assisted a friend with his Eagle Scout project. Ethan is a JLS 2019 Finalist.
In the fall Ethan is attending Paul Smith’s College and majoring in Wildlife Management. He will be playing soccer for Paul Smith’s and already has a Survey Technology internship lined up for next summer. For his future plans, Ethan said, “I hope to join a conservation organization to protect and preserve nature. I hate to see animals go extinct and want to have my children be able to have similar experiences in the woods that I have had. Humans are destroying this planet and people need to open their eyes and realize that we share this planet with every other species. As we harm the planet we essentially are creating a man-made mass extinction.”
Ethan is the son of Jennifer and Lenny DaRosa of West Hoosick. He is the brother of Elizabeth DaRosa. His grandparents are Mike and Cindy Mattison, and his great-grandmother is Mary Mattison, all of West Hoosick.
Here are the rest of the top 10:
#3 Madeline Mae Yeung
#4 Angel Decker
#5 Calyssa Lohnes
#6 Grace Wysocki
#7 Maria Munoz-Ochoa
#8 Jack Skorupski
#9 Mollie Clyde
#10 Keelyn Elizabeth Bradley