Ty Ricard is a dream student.
Ricard, Grade 11 student at Princess Margaret Secondary, was chosen as the Penticton-Okanagan Rotary Club Student of the Month for May.
“When Ty is away, which is rare, there is a noticeable gap in our classroom community,” said Ricard’s English teacher Trish Mundy, who nominated him because of his outstanding work ethic as well as his creativity. “It’s such a treat to see that.
Ricard loves to learn, demonstrated by his classroom discussions that offer mature and interesting perspectives from his experience and extensive reading. He cares about the learning process and is known by his teachers to ask thoughtful questions of the material being studied. He is also quick to help others and can tactfully redirect peers during working groups.
“Ty is exemplary among his peers, continuously demonstrating maturity, respect for others, and remarkable diligence in descriptive, creative, expository and persuasive writing,” said Mundy. “He models leadership qualities especially in his skilful listening and valuing others’ ideas.”
Work ethic and focus help Ricard excel in the classroom. He earned 99.4 per cent in Math 11, and aced his final. He is currently taking Math 12 and has 100 per cent. His favourite subjects are Biology and English.
“I like the creative side of learning. Creating characters where you can input your own ideas, express them through their actions,” he explained. “Biology, I just love to learn about life and the chemical make up of people and how we are.”
Ricard has a passion for writing essays and short stories — it enables him to “think outside the box” — and he is never satisfied with a first draft editing extensively until he has conveyed precisely the supportive detail. Mundy said the most difficult thing for him to do is to hand in a paper that he would have liked to continue to improve upon, but time got in the way.
“I’d love to write my own novel,” said Ricard, who lists Stephen King and Rick Riordan as his favourite authors. “It’s hard to nowadays. I like going into every aspect of a story and putting description in. It makes it more livid. You can really see what’s happening, creating your own path.”
Ricard likes King’s scary side, naming The Shining as his favourite book. His interest in Greek Mythology led him to reading Riordan’s Percy Jackson series.
As much as Ricard loves reading, he also enjoys sports. In 2015, Ricard helped his under-14 field lacrosse team capture the B.C. lacrosse Association Subway Provincial championship. Ricard earned the Fair Play Award.
“Ty Ricard is a fantastic team player. We were short a defender who was with us all year and decided not to come to the tournament. Ty stepped up and took on that role,” said coach Dan Chetner, adding it wasn’t his preferred position.
“That was a very intersting part of my life,” said Ricard. “It was fun to be around people that have the same mindset as me. To succeed and win at the game.”
Ricard has since moved on from playing lacrosse, but loves volleyball and playing tennis with his father. He enjoys that volleyball is about strategy and tennis requires precision.
“Ty is an outstanding sportsman in every sense of the word. He is athletic, displays excellent sportsmanship and leadership, enjoys himself, and more importantly, adds to the enjoyment of sport for his classmates as well,” said his PE teacher Tim Haberstock. “A class full of Ty’s would be welcome anywhere.”
Ricard also enjoys travelling with family and learning about other cultures.
Being named the Rotary Club of Penticton-Okanagan Student of the Month means a lot to Ricard as it recognizes him for what he had done in school.
“It’s an honour to be with other people that have done similar things because of their strive and their ability to learn,” he said.
Ricard said his teachers have made an impact on him as he knows how he should act, but also about life challenges and facing them. How work hard can help overcome things.
Student of the Month is a Rotary Club of Penticton-Okanagan initiative. The award aims to recognize outstanding students for unique achievement in scholastics, extracurricular activities, community involvement, leadership and service to others. The Rotary Club of Penticton-Okanagan is partnering with Penticton Secondary School and Princess Margaret Secondary School, aided by a generous financial contribution from Gateway Casinos as part of their proactive involvement in wide-ranging community service projects.