Senior Top Ten
the University of California, Irvine majoring in biomedical engineering in order to enter the medical field. Even though you may think that she is super stressed, she explains that she has built a schedule which allows her to use her time efficiently while also taking time to destress by hanging out with friends and admiring sunsets. Along with being top of her class she has gained other awards such as the math and science department awards. Now that she is moving onto the next stage in her life she is nervous to transition from the perks of high school into becoming more independent and responsible. Although she has sacrificed tons of time and energy being so involved in school along with keeping up in her rigorous classes she claims that it was all worth it because she is “making history” for her family and the school being Valedictorian and Hispanic woman. She says, “I feel like some people didn't expect me to be number one” so she urges underclassmen not to allow what others say “get to you because you know who you are and it doesn't matter what other people say.”
Valedictorian Jennifer Esparza feels honored as a hispanic woman to be at the top of her class. Being at Mayfair since 7th grade she has taken 10 Advanced Placement (AP) classes: Spanish Language, Spanish Literature, English and Composition, U.S. History, Psychology, Calculus, Macro-economics, Microeconomics, Government, and Biology. Among these AP’s she claims that her favo-rite was Biology and the hardest was Economy. While maintaining focus on her classes she is also a part of Leo Club, Spanish Literature Club, California Scholarship Feder-ation (CSF), Mayfair Academic Program (MAP), and stands as president of National Honor Society (NHS). Esparza plans on attending
He explains that he is able to stay on top of his studies so well because he works extremely hard to finish all of his work during class. When he gets home he then usually has time to wind down by playing volleyball, hanging out with friends, and most importantly reading. He describes leaving Mayfair as bittersweet. He is excited to begin a new chapter in BYU but intimidated that he will now have to be even more responsible and intentional over his studies. Regardless of the difficulties he faced in such demanding classes he is glad that he took said classes because they have allowed him to knock a year off of his college career due to the credits he received through passing all of his AP’s. He advises underclassmen not to overthink because they probably have more potential than they think in any aspect.
Salutatorian of the class of 2022, Matthew Bartschi humbly says that although he is proud of himself he doesn’t think about it too much. During his 6 years at Mayfair he's taken AP Human Geography, World History, Physics, U.S. History, English Language and Composition, English Literature, Calculus, and Micro and Macroeconomics; 10 in total. He claims that AP World History was his favorite AP while the hardest has been AP Physics. He managed to keep up with his academics while also participating in various extracurriculars such as MAP, CSF, and varsity volleyball, all while working at Chick-fil-a. Given math is his favorite subject, he will be atten-ding Brigham Young University in Utah this fall to study mathematics.
Mia Cuellar, 4.61
Mia Cuellar has been an addition to the Mayfair community since 7th grade. Since then she has taken a total of 9 AP classes, that includes: Human Geography, World history, Spanish Language, English Language and Composition, U.S. History, Calculus, Government, Spanish Literature, and English Literature. Her hardest and favorite AP class was Calculus. Cuellar has been involved in extracurriculars such as cross country, track and field, president of MAP, and other volunteer activities. Cuellar will be attending California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and will be majoring in biomedical engineering. Her plan is to transfer to a medical school and afterwards become an obstetrician gynecologist. Being a scholar athlete comes with many responsibilities but Cuellar learned that you need to prioritize some things more than others. An achievement that Cuellar is proud of is her improvement in track and field which led her to break the school record for the mile run. Now that she is a step closer to graduating she says she can't believe that the school year is coming to an end and that she's been at Mayfair since middle school. She says that she's definitely sad that she won't be around the same people anymore but excited to start a new chapter in her life. Cuellar then goes on to say that if she could give one piece of advice to underclassmen it would be, “ Enjoy every part of high school regardless of it being outside of high school there's always something to take out of it.”
Zachary Velasquez, 4.60
Zachary Velasquez expresses that his achievement of making the Top Ten was meaningful but definitely tough. While at Mayfair for 6 years he has taken a total of 10 AP’s: Human Geography, Physics, World History, English Language and Composition, U.S. History, Computer Science A, Biology, Government, along with Micro and Macroeconomics. He discloses that his favorite AP was Biology and the most difficult was Physics. Velasquez not only took a number of AP courses, but he also is involved in a variety of extracurricular activities such as cross country, track and field, MAP, CSF, Leo Club, and he occasionally volunteers as a youth leader at his church. This fall he plans to be at California State University, Long Beach in hopes to major in biomedical engineering to enter the Air Forces’ medical team as a flight surgeon. Even though every now and then he does procrastinate he makes sure to get everything done on time. He reveals that he personally got used to the workload after taking difficult classes continuously but he still takes time for himself through running. He says that he is ready to “get the future moving” but he is also sad to admit that he will likely have to leave a lot of people behind. Even though he doesn't necessarily believe that taking all of these AP classes was worth it for college he is glad that he took them because they taught him to “grind through everything.” When asked for a piece of advice for underclassmen he mentions, “you can't just focus on school or you'll just get burnt out. You need to find an outlet that works for you.”
Claudio Succar, 4.56
Claudio Succar has been at Mayfair since middle school totaling up to six years. While at Mayfair, he has taken a total of 10 AP classes which includes: Human Geography, World History, U.S. History, English Language and Composition, Computer Science A, Calculus, Macroeconomics and Microeconomics, Environmental Science, and English Literature. Succar was involved in Environmental Science Club (ESC), Key Club, MAP, and CSF. His favorite yet hardest AP class was Calculus. Succar has decided on committing to the University of California, Irvine and will be majoring in computer science. His dream job is being a front-end and software developer. He then states that his Top Ten placement doesn't matter to him nor does he care about his recognition but that he sees his placement as a gateway to better opportunities for college. He then expresses that balancing his school life and personal life is extremely hard and that if he had to stay up at 3 a.m. to study he would. He explains that he struggles with time management but tries to make up for it by being prepared for anything that is being thrown at him. Succar says his greatest achievement is being in the Top Ten because he couldn't believe how high of a ranking he got. He then goes on to say that he's glad his years are finally wrapping up because he is now on the path to college and success. His final words were “take AP classes because it will benefit you later on in college and join a sport because it can get you scholarships and other opportunities.”
Chiagozie Okoye, 4.55
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Chiagozie Okoye has been a Mayfair Monsoon since middle school and has taken a total of 10 AP classes such as Human Geography, Computer Science A, English Language and Composition, U.S. History, Computer Science, Calculus, Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, English Literature, and Government. He says that his favorite AP class was U.S. History because of the debate and discussions they had while his hardest AP was Economics. He’s been involved in extracurricular activities such as being drum major for the Marching Band, Amnesty club, Key club, MAP, and NHS. Okoye is very passionate about being able to help others receive electricity to their houses and help the environment. He says he is most proud of his scholarship given to him and will allow him to make a better future for everyone. Okoye will be attending Washington University in St. Louis and will be majoring in Mechanical Engineering. All in all Okoye expresses that during your years at Mayfair you should join a club, sport or performing art and hold on to something that will allow you to be a part of something great while in high school.
Kimberly Barajas, 4.53
Kimberly Barajas admits that she did not expect to make the Top Ten, but she feels proud and successful nonetheless. Being at Mayfair since 7th grade she reveals that has taken the following AP classes: Spanish Language, Spanish Literature, World History, U.S. History, Government, Psychology, and English Language and Composition. Her favorite AP has been Spanish Language but the hardest AP has been U.S. History. She also participates in MAP, NHS, CSF, and Leo Club. Barajas will attend the University of California, Irvine in the fall, majoring in business management with hopes to become a database administrator. She reveals that she mostly stays to herself and doesnt go out much but school has almost served as a destresser for her in itself. She also likes to read and watch videos in order to take a break from school. She is scared to enter college but she is ready to move on from high school. Although it was a lot of work she is glad that she took these classes because they opened the doors to college for her. She encourages underclassmen to be more involved and take more chances to make memories.
Michelle Lork, 4.49
Michelle Lork has been part of our Mayfair family since 7th grade in which she has been at Mayfair for a total of six years. Since then she has taken a total of 11 AP classes which includes: Human Geography, World History, English Language and Composition, U.S. History, Chemistry, Computer Science A, English Literature, Macroeconomics, Environmental Science and Calculus AB. She’s been a part of many clubs such as MAP, CSF, United Nations International Child Emergency Fund (Unicef), Key Club, and is the president of ESC. She says that her favorite AP class has to be either Chemistry or Environmental Science and says that the hardest was World History. After Mayfair, Lork will be attending University of California, Irvine and will be majoring in computer science. She says her dream job is becoming a software developer for Google or Amazon. Lork says, “It feels great to have your academic achievements recognized for being in the Top Ten but I don’t think it's worth all the stress because school is not your whole life. I wish in high school I was able to socialize more. Overall, I just dont think it's worth all the stress.” She then goes on to say that she balanced her school life by reserving weekdays only for school work, while having a stress free weekend and late nights that are strictly for family time unless there was a school event. Lork’s greatest achievements have been receiving a scholarship, committing to UC Irvine and making her family proud. Now that her days are coming to an end at Mayfair she says that she can't wait to graduate and is excited for what's to come. Lastly, Lork advises high school students to prioritize mental health and reserve time for family and friends because school work and grades are temporary but friendship and family is forever.
Emma Taing, 4.45
Emma Taing has been here at Mayfair since middle school and has been a part of many extracurricular activities and 6 AP classes such as Human Geography, U.S. History, English Language and Composition, Chemistry, Biology, and Statistics. She says her favorite AP was English Language while her hardest AP class was Chemistry. Taing says that balancing her classes was difficult but she says that she tries to just go with the flow and manage her time. As for extracurricular activities she says that she was involved in ASB, Key Club, Unicef, Laff club, NHS, and ESC. She goes on to express how she is so proud of becoming a strong person mentally and being able to accept my emotions. She says she is glad that she is able to balance her personal life from her school life. Taing is still undecided on what college she will plan to attend but her dream job is to become a nurse because it gives her a balance of science and health. I’ve also been interested in genetic counseling which allows me to work with genetics and DNA. She then goes on to say that being in the Top Ten was hard and that she regrets spending way too much time on academics rather than having fun. But continues on by saying that it’s an amazing opportunity to be honored for all your hard work. Taing says her last few weeks at school are bittersweet and that she’s just excited to move on with her life and to see what’s in store for her in the future. Her advice for our underclass students is to enjoy your time here at Mayfair and don’t focus on the drama; it's just temporary.
Salome Usim, 4.44
Salome Usim is excited and proud of all the accomplishments she's achieved throughout her 6 years at Mayfair. During her time here she has taken AP Human Geography, Psychology, English Language and Composition, U.S. History, Microeconomics, Biology, Calculus, and Government; a whopping total of 8 AP’s. Out of these classes she claims that her all time favorite AP that she took was Psychology while the hardest was Calculus AB. Although much of her time is spent dealing with schoolwork Usim is also involved in Amnesty International Club, CSF, NHS, MAP, and Showtime. She has decided to attend the University of California, Los Angeles majoring in Pre-Psychobiology in order to pursue her love of science and her dream of becoming a psychiatrist. In order to keep herself from getting overwhelmed with piles of homework she creates a schedule of times to study and times to relax. She takes time to loosen up by watching TV shows, taking pictures, and singing. She is ecstatic that her work has paid off and that she's finally going to get some time to rest but she is also sad that she will have to move on from friends and memories that she made at Mayfair. She was to to motivate underclassmen to“strive to be the best you can be but don’t forget to relax and reward yourself for your accomplishments”