Woodstock eighth-grader wins essay contest
Norah Wolfe, an eighth-grader at Woodstock Union Middle School, won first place and $500 in the region four division of the 20th Annual Vermont 8th Grade Lincoln Essay Competition, which is hosted by Hildene, the Lincoln Family Home. Evie Thom, an eighth-grader at Upper Valley Waldorf School in Quechee was an honorable mention and awarded $200.
Students across the state were asked to write essays of fewer than 500 words about the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and “the document’s enduring significance,” according to a news release from the Manchester, Vt.-based nonprofit organization. “By connecting America’s founding principles to the present moment, students wrote compellingly about a wide range of topics and the implications for society and their own communities.”
Secondary accomplishments
Audrey Cote, of Lebanon High School, was named a runner up in the original art category in the annual Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice “for a digital portrait of an Iranian poet and LGBTQ rights activist,” according to a news release from the Concord-based nonprofit organization.
Thetford Academy seniors Elijah Renner and Daniel Mann were selected as semifinalists in the 2026 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, which is hosted by the U.S. Department of Education.
Three Woodstock Union High School students won 2026 Laurance and Mary Rockefeller Legacy Scholarship Essay Competition, which is open to Woodstock students. The students wrote essays about “how to make a lasting positive and sustainable environmental, cultural, or economic impact,” in the state for up to 100 years in the future, according to a news release from the Woodstock Foundation, a nonprofit organization that runs the contest and administers scholarships: Schuyler Hagge, senior, first place, $2,500; Nicholas Cellini, junior, second place, $1,000; and Khloi Bruso, junior, third place, $500.
Post-secondary graduations
Ava Reed, of West Lebanon, earned an undergraduate degree from Salve Regina University in Newport, R.I., this spring.
Hazel Fahey, of Bradford, Vt., and Lucie Turcotte, of Canaan, earned degrees from Stonehill College in Easton, Mass., this spring.
Post-secondary accomplishments
The following Upper Valley residents made the president’s list at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester for the spring 2026 semester: Dylan Bastian, Perkinsville; Chantel Genest, Perkinsville; Kelly Baptie, Perkinsville; Ava Thorburn, Wilder; Jennifer Conrad, Sharon; Irene Gutierrez, Norwich; Samantha Goodwin, Bethel; Ashlie Dubois, White River Junction; Dan Severance, White River Junction; Jacqueline Carter, West Lebanon; Ezra Gilbert, West Lebanon; Nicholas Belisle, Sunapee; Hunter Marsh, Plainfield; Wyatt Underhill, Piermont; Connor Loomis, Orford; Jocelyn Patterson, Orford; Kelsey Carmichael, Newport; Olivia Moody, Newport; Richard Trujillo, Newport; Dennis Johnson, Unity; Ryan Bailey, Newport; Victoria Turcot, Newport; Christine Day, Newport; Lena Wanner, Lyme; Emma Raymond, Lebanon; Melanie McDonough, Lebanon; Luke Cassidy, Lebanon; Melissa Soendergaard, Lebanon; Alice Elliott, Lebanon; Sam Cawley, Lebanon; Rachel Sullivan, Lebanon; Lelina Urquia, Lebanon; Emma Snow, Haverhill; Andrew Powell, Hanover; James Grant, Grantham; Morgan Brown, Grantham; Cole Currier, Enfield; Brandy-Jo Tuttle, Enfield; Neil Williams, of Claremont; Joshua Gribble, Cornish; Christopher Brooks, Claremont; Christian Copley, Claremont; Madison Wheeler, Claremont; Sydney Davis, Claremont; Megan Carter, Claremont; Genesis Grimes, Claremont; Matthew Eagan, Claremont; Olivia Baker, Claremont; Danyel Stackpole, Claremont; David Williams, Claremont; Justin Humphreys, Claremont; Cameron Travis, Claremont; Kathryn Reed, Claremont; Lilly Crowl, Claremont; Taphena Denison, Claremont; Joshua Smith, Claremont; Geoffrey Kronberg, Claremont; Kelley Stark, Canaan; Alisha St. George, Canaan; Aubrey Conant, Charlestown; Aiden Scruton, Charlestown; Kyle Gray, Charlestown; Kassidy Ransom, Charlestown; Chelsea Weatherford, Charlestown; Robert Malinowski, Charlestown; Phoenix Russell, Charlestown; William Anderson, Springfield, N.H.; Kayden Surprenant, New London; Sarah Martin, New London; and Janessa Twombly, Grafton.
The following Upper Valley residents made the dean’s list at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester for the spring 2026 semester: Zachary Moote, White River Junction; Logan Caffrey, White River Junction; William Matthews, White River Junction; John Vogelien, Orford; Alyssa Smith-Duff, Lebanon; Andrea Vieu, Lebanon; Logan Lambert, Enfield; Kyle Henderson, Enfield; Brianna Frisbee, Claremont; and Gabrielle Stearns, Charlestown.
Molly Reed, of Sunapee, made the dean’s list at Berry College in Rome, Ga., for the spring 2026 semester.
Fielding Essensa, of Lyme, was elected to The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi chapter at the University of Massachusetts.
Elaina Cooper, of Grantham, made the dean’s list at Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio, for the spring 2026 semester.
Kaelyn Courtemanche, of White River Junction, made the dean’s list at Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn., for the spring 2026 semester.
Rhys E. Anderson, of Norwich, made the dean’s list at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind., for the spring 2026 semester.
School Notes are published in the Monday Valley News as space and time permits. Email academic accomplishments to schoolnotes@vnews.com.
