Student Spotlight for October – FHHS Senior Leah Amos

Posted on 10/21/2016

Every month during the school year, the Francis Howell School District (FHSD) Board of Education welcomes the best and brightest students the community has to offer to their meetings. At the October meeting, Francis Howell High School (FHHS) senior Leah Amos represented the student body. FHHS Principal Dr. Dave Wedlock had the pleasure of announcing her as the student representative to the Board, and the only problem he had was choosing an adjective to describe her… so he chose many.

“To introduce Leah,” Dr. Wedlock said to the audience at the Board meeting, “I thought that we would have a bit of fun by using adjectives that we think best describe her.”

Dr. Wedlock first used the adjective, “relentless” to describe Amos, the daughter of Robin and Randy Carpenter. “She’s a relentless learner,” Dr. Wedlock said. “Leah is a National Merit Commended student whose PSAT score places her in the top 3% of 1.6 million students nationwide.” She has a 4.76 GPA, and is taking five college-level Advanced Placement (AP) classes and two honors classes this year.

The next descriptor he used was “talented.” Dr. Wedlock said, “Beyond the classroom, she is a part of eight clubs and sports at Francis Howell that include the Chemistry Club, Track, Math Club, and National Honor Society.” Then he used the word “leader” to describe Amos. “Leah participated in an extensive leadership and community service program with the YWCA this summer that included six days of training,” Dr. Wedlock explained. “As part of this process, participants were evaluated on their leadership potential, commitment to community, academic excellence, and ability to have meaningful conversations with others. I am proud to say that, at the end of this process, Leah was awarded the 2016 Future Leader Award and received a college scholarship.”

Next, Dr. Wedlock called her “courageous.” Leah’s the only one of the 12-person YWCA governing board who isn’t an adult. She will assist in creating presentations on domestic and sexual abuse for young people, to educate them about warning signs and actions to take.

“And finally,” Dr. Wedlock said, “she’s gregarious – skilled at social navigation and connection. In talking with teachers, I learned Leah is a wonderful student, classmate, and huge fan of retired NFL football quarterback Payton Manning. She appreciates him for his charitable contributions and work in the Denver community. The best part of the story, however, is that she built this affinity for Mr. Manning by watching football with her grandfather, and listening to him tell stories about the great football hero.”

Amos’s plans to study to become a biochemical engineer and/or neurosurgeon at the University of Missouri-Rolla, and study the causes of Alzheimer’s disease. And whatever adjective you use to describe Leah Amos, the word FHSD will use to describe how they feel about her is “proud.”

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