Although there are countless scholarships dispersed amongst the seniors of Stoughton High School each year, one in particular recognizes some of the school’s top scholars. The Academic Excellence Scholarship is awarded to the top-achieving scholars within each Wisconsin school, and has found its way to two seniors at SHS: Emma Ballweg and Kyle Gibson.
The Academic Excellence Scholarship is traditionally granted to the top student or students with the highest grade point averages, which is observed as a 4.0 at SHS due to the school’s unweighted GPA system. However, since many schools have ties for the top-place students—Stoughton among them, with SHS having 29 seniors with 4.0s—schools often use American College Test (ACT) scores to determine recipients.
Ballweg and Gibson have worked continuously throughout high school, taking rigorous schedules, balancing Advanced Placement classes, and engaging in extracurriculars. In addition to SHS classes, both Ballweg and Gibson have been enrolled in university classes to extend their academic careers.
“In Algebra 2—towards the end of it—I was very bored. It was going slow, and I had this insatiable curiosity. [It led me to] skip Precalculus,” Gibson said.
Gibson went on to take Calculus 3 their senior year at the University of Wisconsin—Madison, extending their interests and beginning to fulfill their curious nature. Similarly, Ballweg has taken classes at UW-Madison due to Advanced Placement in Spanish classes.
Their motivations are self-imposed and are the result of their personalities. While Gibson explains their motivation as a deep curiosity that can be tamed through taking in new information, Ballweg does it more out of the satisfaction of a high GPA.
“It’s not like my parents put too much pressure on me,” Ballweg said. “I just find it satisfying. You could say I’m a bit of a perfectionist, so I’m always striving to do the best that I can to prove to myself, [and] to test my limits.”
Gibson and Ballweg both exceed high school academics and plan to go to university and major in sciences.
“I’m going to college in UW-Madison, and [majoring] in Physics; probably particle physics. After that, I’m probably going to pursue a doctorate,” Gibson said.
In high school, Gibson has given themselves an edge by taking physics, calculus, and several AP classes that can transfer into college credit.
Ballweg plans to major in environmental-based sciences, but outside of the state.
“I am going to go to the University of Iowa, and I plan to major in environmental sciences on a pre-law track, so I can become an environmental lawyer,” Ballweg said.
While Ballweg has established her plans, they don’t fit the frame outlined by the Academic Excellence Scholarship. One key feature of the award is that the student must be enrolled in a Wisconsin school after graduation.
“It’s […] confusing. Technically, I got the scholarship, but I’m going to end up turning it down,” Ballweg said. The scholarship has now been granted to senior Evan Muchka.
Despite their plans post-graduation, Ballweg and Gibson have worked for four years to achieve this award, and now serve as role models for aspiring students. Ballweg shares her advice for students looking to level up their academic performance and qualify for the Academic Excellence Scholarship and other scholarships.
“Keep in mind that your ACT score does actually matter for this. I know a lot of people in my grade were caught by surprise [by that],” Ballweg said. “I would also say you don’t need to put too much pressure on yourself. If it happens, it happens, and that’s awesome. But at the same time, there’s so many other ways to get scholarships. And you can still be an amazing student and not get the scholarship.”
Though these honorable students may be seen solely as hard-working individuals, they have personal motivations and goals behind their excellent achievements.
