by Maxwell Kozlov

Senior Niki Lew recently won Student of the Year, a career and technical education award.

According to the official award criteria, the winner must have a minimum GPA of 3.5, vocational competence in career field, good attendance, leadership qualities, career and technical education related work experience, be involved in extracurricular activities and in the community and have demonstrated respect for human differences. Additionally, he or she must be a senior and in an eligible career and technical education program.

The award is a statewide honor, according to career and vocational technical education department head Diana Robbins. Every school that has a career and technical education program selects one winner, and all of the winners attend a statewide banquet held in Worcester, later this year, with the commissioner of the career and technical education program. Along with attending the banquet, Lew will also receive a scholarship as a part of this award.

Lew is in the graphics communication program. She said, “The things that I learned here, I can use later in life.”

Robbins said, “Niki has a generosity of spirit. She speaks in ‘we’ not ‘I,’ and that distinguishes her.”
There were three other candidates for this award: seniors Mike Ethier, Kevin Fitzgerald and Mike Safran.
“All of the students were deserving,” said junior Pheobe Bennett, “but Niki was the most deserving because she is hard-working, she always cares about everyone around her, even if she doesn’t know them. She is a great leader.”