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By: Ashley Avila and Tania Becerril
Anel Ibañez is a hardworking student who has accomplished something that only one person gets to experience - being the valedictorian. She was able to accomplish this twice in her life: middle school and high school. But even though she is number one, not a lot of people know who she is aside from being valedictorian, so the question is, who really is Anel Ibañez outside of academics?
Over the last couple of years, Anel has been able to maintain all A’s. She has worked extremely hard to get where she is through an intense focus on her education. Despite earning such high grades, Anel has experienced high levels of stress just like the rest of us. She has committed hours of her time to completing her schoolwork and studying for important exams because she felt the pressure to succeed at all times. After earning such high grades, she was accustomed to the feeling of never getting bad grades, so when she did it made her stress increase. She didn’t want to disappoint her teachers or loved ones with her bad grades, revealing that Anel isn’t as perfect as her flawless grades make her seem. She does have struggles that many students here at Neuwirth face, but she also serves as an example that you can overcome these struggles. “I like to hang out with my dog and listen to music as it helps me calm down from stress.” Anel says with a smile. “It distracts me from school for a while.” She enjoys taking small breaks from doing her assignments because it sparks up her motivation to complete her work again.
In her free time, after finishing necessary work, Anel loves to be creative. She enjoys painting and doing any type of crafts. “I like to feel like Bob the builder sometimes.” Anel says with a laugh. She mostly loves to bake. Anel has baked many different types of goods, but she especially loves to bake for those around her. She has made cinnamon rolls, flan, brownies for her friends on holidays, birthdays, or whenever anyone asks for some food. Most importantly, like many of us I’m sure, Anel LOVES to binge watch TV shows. Her favorite shows are Stranger Things, The Last of US, and The Simpsons.
We also interviewed some other people who are fans of Anel, Mr. Bragg, who is her previous 11th grade AP English Lang teacher and a close friend of hers, Emeli Ventura. Mr. Bragg described Anel as a quiet student which he had interpreted as Anel not being interested in his class, but when he saw her writing that's when he became nervous. He hoped that Anel would never find out that she was actually smarter than he was (sorry to ruin that for you Bragg). She stood out from the rest of his students which “makes it impossible for every other student after her to live up to her standards”.
While Anel might seem quiet at first glance, she is a great friend with a great sense of humor. But Mr. Bragg would never wish to be Anel: “I’m not trying to make a speech, have that much stress, go to college again,” Mr. Bragg says while laughing, “I’m ready to just lie in my grave.”
Emeli Ventura met Anel when she moved schools during the 7th grade and they have been friends ever since. She describes Anel as someone who is very smart, honest and a nice person overall. “She is always there when I need someone even if she is going through a bad day herself”, Emeli expressed. When it comes to her friends, Anel is someone you can rely on. Even if she is stressed about her school she is always there for her friends and makes them laugh over her rants about what she has witnessed that day. Even though the two make fun of each other, it just goes to show what a close bond they have. “What else can I ask for in a friend?” Emeli said with a smile on her face, “She always makes me laugh with her shenanigans and overall I feel like she is someone I can count on when I need them the most.”
Anel is not just a hardworking student that many teachers see, she is also a great friend that those around her are able to appreciate. Now all of her hard work has paid off as she is valedictorian yet again for high school and we couldn’t be more proud of her accomplishments. All of her classmates have seen just how dedicated she was to her studies and this honor is well deserved.
Although we still think that she needs a break because she has worked so hard already, Anel won’t have much time before heading off to college at UCLA, where she will study to become a doctor, and probably be valedictorian once again.
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