![The cross country team poses for the camera after finishing the district meet. The varsity boys, JV boys and JV girls all placed third and the varsity girls placed fourth. “Coach put in the right training for us for this season, so I think we will be peaking this week and the next couple of weeks,” varsity runner and junior Nathan Kukla said. “The chances of making it to state are very high, but we don’t settle for the lowest and there is always going to be that chance, so [we] race for the best.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Heidi-831-1200x900.jpg)
![Sucking in a breath of air, freshman Lily Pope competes in the 200 yard individual medley. On Oct. 25, the swim team competed in the AISD Swim Invitational. Overall, the girls team took second place and the boys team came in eleventh. “My favorite stroke is butterfly because I do the best in that stroke,” Pope said. “I feel like [butterfly] can test how [your ability] to convince yourself to keep going. The hardest part of swimming is convincing yourself to stay strong and keep pushing during a hard race [when] everything is tired.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/POPE-1200x804.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, Author Ehigbor Okosun, members of Page Turners, and other students reflect on the author's visit. “I thought the visit was great,” Senior Amia De Leon said. “It was interesting talking to her and [getting to know] her process and her thoughts and books in general. But I think the reason it went well [was that] people got to ask questions. I'm glad that she said so much in response to the questions and it wasn't just one and done. [The author’s responses] felt very articulate.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Sebastian-5-1200x800.jpg)
![Standing in front of the field at a freshman football game, cheerleader freshman Jacob Gaudreau along with teammate freshman Bella Gibson pose for a photo during halftime of game. “[Cheer has] definitely given me a much more outgoing personality,” Gaudreau said. “I used to be very introverted, so it's definitely made me more extroverted towards people.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Ingrid-204-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding a wooden pizza toy, senior Taylor Peterson plays with small children in Bucaramanga, Colombia. During the summer, Peterson traveled to Colombia to help build an elementary school that only had two classrooms but five or six grades with one teacher. “We add[ed] two more classrooms,” Peterson said. “It’s kind of hard when you have two or three grades in one classroom and you only have one teacher. It’s very hard to actually get some beneficial learning. [The extra classrooms will give the students] a better quality of education because they’ll actually have a place specific for their learning.” Photo by Taylor Peterson](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-P.png)
![Swinging with his arm extended, senior Nolan Park hits the ball smoothly over the net and to the opponent’s side. Park is one of four varsity tennis captains and helped the team win district championships. “Winning district champs was a pretty awesome feeling,” Park said. “We had lost to Liberty Hill a couple of weeks before, but when we played them [again], we came out and really took care of business. We took them out and it was just a really awesome night.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kassidy-419.jpg)
![Standing proud, varsity senior athletes Rafael Escobar, Griffin Jacobs, Jakob Martin, and juniors Jackson Springer and Jack Morris pose with their newly earned medals. The varsity team finished third out of 14 teams on Sept. 25. “The team's primary goal is to win the district championship,” head coach Cody Price said. "We're confident that with our action plan in place, we can accomplish this mission. [For the next tournament], our preparation involves assessing our strengths and weaknesses, celebrating milestones and creating individual development plans." Photo courtesy of Cody Price](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/golf.jpg)
Top of the Timberwolves
Valedictorian Feels Success, Receives First Year Tuition Waiver From UT Austin
Ending the year with a 5.75 GPA, senior Grant Lee is the 2019 valedictorian of his senior class. He was given the news just a few weeks ago, along with other students who are top in the class. “Being told I am officially the valedictorian was easily one of the best feelings ever,” Lee said. “Four painful years of studying and working hard ultimately paid off in the end.”
May 21, 2019
On May 31, nearly 500 seniors will walk across the stage and be recognized for obtaining a high school degree. On this day, senior Grant Lee will stand in front of his classmates, friends and family to be acknowledged for his whopping 5.75 GPA, making him the valedictorian of this year’s graduating class.
Lee’s rank started out at number two during freshman year and it wasn’t until the end of the first semester of his junior year when he claimed his spot as number one in the senior class of 473 students. Lee was recently informed that his rank is secure and that he is the valedictorian of the class of 2019.
“Being told I am officially the valedictorian was easily one of the best feelings ever,” Lee said. “Four painful years of studying and working hard ultimately paid off in the end.”
Lee said he pushed himself throughout high school by taking 12 AP classes: Human Geography, World History, English III, Chemistry, US History, Spanish IV and V, Macroeconomics, Government, Environmental Science, Biology and Calculus.
“Calculus was probably the most interesting AP class to me simply because it’s math, which is my favorite subject,” Lee said. “AP Chemistry was pretty hard, but my weakest subject is definitely history, so I would have to say that AP World History was the most challenging for me.”
Although his course load kept him busy, Lee managed to be involved in National Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta, National Spanish Honor Society, the Asian Heritage Club, Timberwolves for the Environment and DECA.
“One of my favorites is definitely Asian Heritage Club, not only because I am a co-president, but also because I helped found the club,” Lee said. “At our meetings we play games and do fun activities that relate to Asian culture, gaining a loyal fan base in the process. I also love DECA because I was able to go to Disney World and Universal Studios in Orlando for winning State.”
Lee said how he remained focused while juggling all these tasks and responsibilities, explaining that his motivation to succeed was driven by a financial motive.
“As shallow as it may seem, money has kept me focused throughout high school,” Lee said. “In freshman and sophomore year, I tried my best and just happened to be highly ranked, but in my junior and senior year, I was most motivated by the first year tuition waiver granted to the highest ranking graduate of Texas public high schools. Without that financial incentive, I very well might have burnt out a long time ago.”
Next fall, Lee is attending the University of Texas at Austin, which is granting him several academic scholarships on top of the first year tuition waiver he earned for being valedictorian. Lee said he plans on majoring in environmental engineering because he loves math and the environment.
“I’m most excited about meeting new like-minded people with similar interests as me,” Lee said. “I usually don’t like getting out of my comfort zone, but being on my own in a college environment next year will force me to get out and socialize with more people.”
Carla Brady • Jun 24, 2019 at 10:41 am
Congratulations, Grant! You are an exceptional young man, and we need to sponsor the advanced education of such men and women as you.
I hope you maintain your enthusiasm.
Just please take good care of yourself and your balance. Burnout–no! JOY–YES!!!
Joanna L Avera • Jun 7, 2019 at 10:23 am
Fantastic job, Grant! I commend you on your maturity, persistence, and hard work. It will pay off in folds. May God bless you with all the goodness life has to offer.