Proving to be completely well-rounded individuals, seniors Nolan Ahlm and Catherine Cole have been nominated for the Triple A award by the Minnesota State High School League which recognizes students for their Academic, Arts, and Athletic talents.
Catherine Cole works hard every day balancing many of her extracurricular activities extremely well with all of her studies. Even with a busy schedule, she maintains her focus on achieving exceptional grades. “Everyone works hard for their grades, and I’ve been fortunate to have good results,” Cole said.
Ahlm feels surprised to receive this nomination. “It’s a pretty sweet honor to be nominated for this award, I wasn’t exactly expecting it so it definitely came as a surprise,” Ahlm said. He is pretty basic in his strategy for studying hard and maintaining great grades. “I try to get my homework turned in on time, that seems to help with the grades,” Ahlm said.
Cole and Ahlm do more than maintain stellar grade point averages. As captain of the swim team, Cole won medals at the state meet for her freestyle stroke. “Freestyle is my best stroke, I do it all year round,” Cole said.
Many of Ahlm’s friends know him as adventurous and intelligent. “He is one of the most outdoorsy people I know proven through his athletic excellence in cross country and track,” Cole said.
Highlighted by his talent in track Ahlm always has intensity and dedication at practices. “I put all of my effort into my practices, there’s no point in not putting in the effort. My favorite and best sport is track, specifically the triple jump,” Ahlm said.
Showcasing their artistic talents, Ahlm plays trumpet in the school band, and Cole participates in speech. As captain of the speech team along with her friends Elle Scott, Rachel Hogan and Liza Magill, she works hard at extemporaneous speeches. “Our team works to learn about current events and articulate them in eight minute speeches,” Cole said. With her exceptional skills on the speech team she rounds out the categories of Academics, Athletics, and Arts and proves to be a perfect nominee for the opportunity to receive a scholarship in college.
With great grades, athletic success, and musical talent in playing the trumpet, Ahlm has truly mastered the skills of balancing his schedule to be a well rounded student. “I’ve been playing trumpet since the 5th grade I believe. I try to practice every night for an hour or so, but occasionally with homework and other activities I can’t play for as long as I’d like to,” Ahlm said.
Students from every school in the state of Minnesota get nominated for this award every year. “I feel honored that others think I have excelled and nominated me for this award,” Cole said.
