Superintendent Kay Wagoner, Ksanet Seghid, Dean Harris, Principal Peggy Dillon, Exchange Club's Reed Wilcox

Superintendent Kay Wagoner, Ksanet Seghid, Dean Harris, Principal Peggy Dillon, Exchange Club’s Reed Wilcox

The Lake Highlands Exchange Club’s Reed Wilcox Friday presented awards to several outstanding students from Lake Highlands High School.

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Among the awardees is Ksanet Seghid, who is featured in the May 2014 Lake Highlands Advocate, along with a couple more inspirational graduating seniors.

This amazing young woman spent much of her high school years caring for her terminally ill mother. Worse than that, for Ksanet, was eventually losing her mother to cancer last year.

Through her turmoil, she helped care for her younger siblings and maintained exceptional grades in advanced classes at LHHS.

And if that isn’t remarkable enough, consider this: She managed all of this after moving to America from Eritrea in Africa when she was in middle school.

She did not know a word of English when she arrived. She was teased relentlessly at her first school. She began settling in once she arrived at Forest Meadow in Lake Highlands.

(Side note: Eritrea is the birthplace of Meb Keflezighi, the recent Boston Marathon winner. Ksanet, too, is a runner.)

Knanet and another outstanding student, Deon Harris, both received the ACE (accepting challenge of excellence) award, which includes a $1,000 scholarship. Ksanet plans to enter the nursing program at Texas Women’s University and Deon will attend Texas Tech. Both will be the first members of their families to attend college; both are members of Richardson ISD’s AVID program, an outstanding system for students who otherwise would likely not consider college an option.

Students of the year awards also were presented at Friday’s event.

Superintendent Kay Waggoner, Youth of the year Kelsey Kaigler and Shane Bono, Principal Peggy Dillon, Exchange Club's Reed Wilcox

Superintendent Kay Waggoner, Youth of the year Kelsey Kaigler and Shane Bono, Principal Peggy Dillon, Exchange Club’s Reed Wilcox

As were teachers of the year. They include Christina Fuller, Lake Highlands Elementary; Laura Coker, Forest Meadow Junior High; Sarah McAnally, Lake Highlands Junior High; Sonja Brock, Thurgood Marshal Elementary; Tameshia Chatman, Skyview Elementary; Susan Stuller, Merriman Park Elementary

Superintendent Kay Waggoner, Teachers of the Year Christina Fuller, Laura Coker, Sarah McAnally, Sonja Brock, Tamesia Chatman, Susan Stuller, Exchange Club's Adam Meierhoffer

Superintendent Kay Waggoner, Teachers of the Year Christina Fuller, Laura Coker, Sarah McAnally, Sonja Brock, Tamesia Chatman,
Susan Stuller, Exchange Club’s Adam Meierhoffer