By HOLLY GASKILL
In another display of their commitment to academics, Southern Wells’ Top 10 students came into school early Wednesday for a special breakfast.
This program is a new addition to the school, seeking to honor the students’ academic accomplishments, commend the families that supported them and have alumni share some of their wisdom.
Cassie Crickard and Daniel Swartz were the inaugural speakers for the Top 10 breakfast.
Crickard graduated from Southern Wells in 2014 and obtained her bachelor’s in business administration with a concentration in human resources from Indiana Tech. She now works at Clean Fuels National in Keystone, where she is the head of human resources and assistant to the CEO, Mike Vanover. Crickard also received her master’s in business administration from Indiana Tech through the company.
Referencing her experience, Crickard advised students to use this time to try new things, ask questions and approach challenges with confidence. Crickard discussed working a handful of short-term jobs in high school and college which allowed her to determine which environments best suited her skills.
Then, when she was confident about where she wanted to be, she pressed for internship opportunities, even at places that did not have internship programs.
“All you need is five seconds of courage to push you toward something that’s going make a difference for you,” Crickard said.
Swartz graduated from Southern Wells in 1999 to earn his bachelor’s degree in illustration from Indiana Wesleyan University. He later obtained a second bachelor’s in visual studio arts with a concentration in painting from Ball State University and a master of fine arts from the University of Hartford.
Swartz has used his artistic skills in various environments over the years, including teaching as a professor at Sterling College and Malone University and running his own company, Hoosier Type Company. In 2022, he was awarded the Indiana Arts Commission grant for his work in letterpress design, which was used to provide Indiana library patrons with a basic introduction to the history of printing.
Looking to the future, Swartz encouraged students to consider the impact of their work. Swartz noted that while it’s easy to get caught up in cultural definitions of success, those things are often not longstanding or permanent. In light of this, Swartz advised the students to put in their best effort, remain humble and combat perfectionism in whatever environment they are in.
“Don’t always expect your job or school to be amazing,” Swartz said. “But when you do things that are boring, it buys you the opportunity to do things that are great. When you do things that are mundane, it gets you in a position to do things that are meaningful.”
The honored students were ranked in the top 10 of their class based on their grade point average.
From 9th grade, the school recognized Jadyn Bannister, Kolbie Beavans, Peyton Ellis, Keith Gartin, Addison Gaskill, Shaylinn Geesaman, Jazlyn Gillum, Gracie Reeves, Dannicka Sorensen and Braden Yencer. In 10th grade, Quinten Darling, Avery Gaskill, Alyssa Green, Ashlie Needler, Alaina Nusbaumer, Kenzie Paxson, Dominic Ramirez, Collena Reeves, Caroline Ripperger, and Derek Rockwell were recognized. Additionally, 11th-grade students Case Boxell, Joshua Bricker, Malaina Culbertson, Perrin Gates, Caleb Johnson, Ella Lahr, Peyton Long, Tessa Maul, Evan Pennington, and Keith Pluimer.
Representing the senior class, in no particular order, Faith Blair, Colin Green, Eve McElhaney, Katelyn McMillan, Zoe Needler, Meet Petel, Kailey Reed, Zoey Solga, Kedrik Sonnigsen, and Jadyn Yencer were recognized for their academic achievement. The group has also selected a school staff member to join them for a special luncheon next week at the Back 40 Junction in Decatur.
“We’re very proud of our students here at Southern Wells,” Principal Kim Conner said. “We take every opportunity we can to celebrate them and their success, and we look forward to their continuing success, whether it be through the next couple years here at Southern Wells or graduating next month.”
holly@news-banner.com
