Vela candidate for U.S. Prez Scholars Program
Knoxville Catholic High School senior and Farragut resident Alonso Vela has been named a candidate in the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.
“It is one of the highest honors bestowed upon graduating seniors,” said Pam Rhoades, KCHS director of marking and communications.
“He was selected on his superior academic and artistic achievements, leadership qualities, strong character and involvement in community and school activities,” she added. “Alonso is a well-rounded student participating in cross country and track, plus robotics and playing the trombone in the Irish Ensemble and All-East Band, as well as heading up the school’s Mathletes Club, which competes in the Tennessee Math Teacher Association contests.”
Vela also received a perfect ACT score of 36 this year, “a remarkable achievement considering fewer than half of 1 percent of the nearly 2 million students who take the ACT earn a top score,” Rhoades said.
He was named a National Merit Scholar semifinalist — an honor reserved for the top 1 percent of PSAT test takers in the state of Tennessee.
Semifinalists in the U.S. Presidential Scholars program will be announced in April, with finalists selected in May.
Vela is the son of Katya and Mario Vela and big brother to Gonzalo, who is a KCHS freshman.
He is considering universities such as Virginia Tech, MIT and Georgia Tech to pursue mechanical engineering, computer science or aerospace engineering.
