Princess Margaret Secondary School’s Sabrina Zheng is the first Student of the Month to be recognized for the 2021-22 school year by the Penticton Sunrise Rotary Club.
Zheng, in Grade 12, is being recognized for her steadfast pursuit of academic excellence and commitment to spearheading leadership activities.
For the last three years, Zheng’s sharp mind and work ethic has earned her top marks in her courses at Maggie, including the top academic award for Grade 11 with a 95 per cent average grade. Those courses include university prerequisites as well as courses in law and psychology.
Zheng and her family moved to Penticton from Vancouver in the summer before she entered Maggie. Reserved by nature, she experienced some homesickness leaving behind her extended family and friends and having to adapt to a new school in a smaller, less culturally diverse community.
By Grade 10, however, she became more comfortable in Maggie’s welcoming and supportive environment and joined the leadership class. Since then, she has become a mainstay of the program, working hard to either lead events that she is passionate about or strongly support those of her peers.
Last year Zheng co-organized, with classmate Nadia Wojcik, Maggie’s inaugural Earth Week in conjunction with global Earth Day on April 22 in an effort to highlight the serious challenges humanity faces in addressing climate change.
One of Zheng’s novel leadership initiatives, dubbed the Kindness Wall, features individualized, thoughtful notes for every single student, with inspirational quotes, illustrating that Maggie, as a community, cares about each and every person.
“Sabrina, who is held in the highest regard by staff and peers alike, is very deserving of this award. A workhorse in our leadership group, she is an amazing role model, radiating kindness and always maintaining a positive demeanor, and is a born leader…kind, thoughtful, organized, thorough, and well-spoken,” said Maggie counsellor Gerri Hess.
Beyond school, Zheng has been a youth volunteer at the Penticton Regional Hospital since 2019, and she presently assists patients at the medical imaging desk.
Zheng’s other activities include working at the family-owned restaurant, Penticton Buffet. During quiet moments, she enjoys relaxing with family and friends, trying new food, and playing the piano, having enrolled in lessons at age six and reaching the Royal Conservatory Grade 10 level.
Upon graduation, Zheng plans to pursue a Bachelor of Science with a focus on health as a gateway to medical school, with the eventual goal of practicing family medicine in Vancouver.
The Student of the Month is a Rotary Club of Penticton Sunrise project in partnership with local secondary schools. The award aims to recognize outstanding students for unique achievement in scholastics, extracurricular activities, community involvement, leadership, and service to others.
To report a typo, email: editor@pentictonwesternnews.com.
<>@PentictonNews
newstips@pentictonwesternnews.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.