Wesley LaPorte honored for community service, volunteer work and
academics
One could call him Superman.
Where most students would be burnt out from his immense work load, Wesley LaPorte, a senior at Live Oak High School, has all the pieces to succeed.
According to Principal Nancy Serigstad, LaPorte’s efforts to reach out to the students have connected with the students like few have done.
“He has earned the respect of the students,” Serigstad said. “He addresses the issues of the students and they hear him. He is an incredible leader.”
LaPorte gives his time to several volunteer jobs, is active in the Live Oak Associated Student Body, is involved with different clubs on campus and has received many different honors.
LaPorte, among other things, is the 2003 Showcase Student of the Year, named by the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce. He and other winners will be honored Saturday, Jan. 31, at the Community and Cultural Center.
The recommendation for the award came from Serigstad who said LaPorte had all the components she was looking for to make the recommendation.
“When I think about all the students I could have chosen, each one of them have different qualifications,” Serigstad said. “Some have an excellent (grade point average), others have done community service and others are involved in a variety of clubs. Wesley has all the pieces. He is a fabulous student. He sets high expectations and has worked in a wide variety of places.”
LaPorte says he didn’t see the honor coming. Serigstad called him in for a meeting of an ASB project he was working on. He walked into the room to applause and flowers, which he gave to his mother, and he says it took him a while to realize what was going on.
“I was completely surprised, I was excited,” LaPorte said.
One of the things that the Chamber selection committee members saw when they selected LaPorte was the many scholastic awards and honors that he has received through out his schooling.
LaPorte has been on the Honor Roll every semester of school for more than 11 years, which means that he has had at least a 3.0 every semester. In the sixth and ninth grades, he received the Presidential Academic Award.
LaPorte was honored by the Martin Murphy Middle School staff being named the outstanding student in language arts and overall.
At Live Oak he was rewarded with the Green and Gold award for in Algebra 2.
LaPorte also revived honors on the Golden State Exams in geometry and biology. He also received high honors in algebra.
He has filled up his time both in and out of school. At Live Oak he is the ASB president, member of the mock trial team and a part of the California Scholastic Federation.
Out of school the list expands dramatically. He volunteers at the Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy, is a Boy Scout about to earn Eagle Scout honors, a tutor and a youth soccer referee. And that is the abridged version.
At the Saint Louise Hospital, LaPorte works with patients who have just come out of surgery.
Depending on the extent of the surgery, he will either take the patients to post-op, if they to stay in the hospital for an extended period, or he will help patients out to their cars if they are able go home the same day.
And with all that he does he still maintains a 3.92 GPA and says he is still going strong. LaPorte hopes to carry this momentum to college in the fall, where he has applied to several different prestigious schools.
LaPorte says that he doesn’t feel burnt out by any of his many activities, something he says his parents are worried about.
“I make a list of all the things that I would like to do,” LaPorte said. “I then choose the things I am able to do and a couple more. Each year I look to add something new because I can handle a little more. So far I have judged what I can handle and what I can’t. I never do too much.”
MOCK TRIAL
During his sophomore year in high school, LaPorte was approached by his English teacher to join the mock trial team. In mock trial, participants work in a fictional legal case in an authentic court room setting. There are pretrial proceedings, witnesses, a judge, a defense, a prosecutor and everything else involved with a trial.
In his first year in mock trial, LaPorte acted as a witness.
LaPorte, as a junior, worked as a pretrial attorney arguing evidence before a judge to have it either included or excluded from the main trial. During this year, LaPorte will continue as a pretrial attorney.
ASB
LaPorte has been active in student government for two of three years at Live Oak, starting his junior year as commissioner of music.
At Nordstrom Elementary School, he was the president during the spring semester of his sixth grade year.
As ASB president LaPorte says that he is trying bolster the involvement of students in school activities, which has been poor recently.
“The thing that has most impressed me the most about him is his role as the ASB leader,” Serigstad said. “He has been able to get support from different groups who normally don’t get recognized. He has worked to get combined lunches and bring fun activities for lunch time. There are a variety students participating; he has brought a fun element to the school.”
LaPorte is trying to implement a video announcement system that will give the morning announcements on classroom television. He hopes this will bring attention to people who normally don’t get recognized.
“We have things here that not everyone knows about,” LaPorte said. “We want to give more recognition to clubs and sports that don’t get the same attention as others.”
The announcements will begin in February once the connection is working.
“He knows the technical jargon,” Serigstad said. “He has done the research and has been able to interact with the technical people. He put together the pilot video and it’s a kick.”
FUTURE PLANS
While he says that he is just living day to day, and enjoying his final year as a high school student, LaPorte has a few ambitious hopes for the future.
His main goal is to become a physician.
LaPorte has applied to Harvard, where he hopes to attend in the fall, majoring in microbiology. From there he plans on attending medical school where he would like to specialize in plastic surgery.
LaPorte has had experience in the medical field, however limited.
He does have other interests if medicine falls through. LaPorte says that he likes politics and would also be interested in business marketing.
He would also like to improve his piano skills, compose music, work for humanitarian aid for reconstructive surgery, get involved in politics and get married and raise a family.
A LOOK BACK
Looking back on his accomplishments, LaPorte says that he doesn’t have a favorite award or honor, but there are those he treasures more than others.
Out of the awards, he says that the Faculty Cup, the outstanding student award from Murphy, was one that he thinks highly of.
“The Faculty Cup was the biggest deal,” LaPorte said. “This was chosen by the staff of Murphy and means a lot to me because of that.”
The reward that he cherishes most highly is that he gets when he works at Saint Louise. There is no physical honor or reward, except for the feeling that he gets by helping the people.
“It builds character,” LaPorte said. “There are no awards, but it’s rewarding in itself.”
As a senior, there is a tendency by some of the students to slack off, the infamous “Senioritus” bug. LaPorte, however, has no intention of slowing down.
“I have always been in the habit of performing as well as I can for what ever I have to do,” LaPorte said. “I do my best with what ever I am participating in.”
Senioritus is not the only thing that LaPorte has stayed away from, according to Serigstad. Despite all the attention, awards and honors, she says LaPorte has kept a humility about him.
“He is not a glory seeker,” Serigstad said. “He has no trouble letting others take the lead; he is very selfless.”
