News of the achievements of local students and members of the Armed Forces.
** Jacob Riddle of Vienna has been named to the honor roll for the winter term at Oregon State University.
** Elizabeth Dawes of Vienna and Selene Swanson of McLean have been inducted into the University of Alabama chapter of Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society.
** Tatiana Spengler of Vienna has been inducted into the Dean College chapter of the Phi Eta Sigma honor society.
** Nishant Jain of Dunn Loring, Alvaro Flores of McLean and Eliana Hall of McLean have been inducted into the Virginia Tech chapter of the Phi Kappa Phi honor society, and Sofia Troya Zambrano of Vienna was inducted into the College of Charleston chapter.
** Sofia Troya Zambrano of Vienna has been inducted into the College of Charleston chapter of the
** Emelia Potteiger of Great Falls was part of a team from James Madison University that emerged victorious in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s Academic Challenge.
As part of the competition, teams were asked to assess the impact of the COVID pandemic on the banking industry. The James Madison team focused on the effects of the pandemic on community banks in the Shenandoah Valley, and the subsequent response.
** Olivia Kloster of McLean, a student at Bridgewater College, recently participated in the college’s Celebration of the Arts, Scholarship, Performance, Innovation and Research Excellence (ASPIRE).
She shared a presentation on “The Impact of Social Isolation on Retirement-Community Residents and Exercise as an Intervention.
** Journalist Maria Ressa, recipient of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, visited The Potomac School on March 31, one day after testifying to the U.S. Senate about the state of freedom of expression in Asia.
Ressa spoke to students, faculty and staff at an Upper School assembly, and met with a Global Perspectives and Citizenship class.She covered a wide range of issues, touching on freedom of the press, social-media manipulation, moral integrity, surveillance capitalism and emergent human behavior.
Her remarks included candid stories about her experience moving from the Philippines to the U.S. as a child, an interview that she conducted with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and the 10 arrest warrants outstanding against her in her native country.
Ressa was one of two journalists awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2021, in recognition of her efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace. In addition to her work as a journalist and author, Ressa is the CEO of Rappler, a digital-only news site that is leading the fight for press freedom in the Philippines, where she now resides.
Discussing ethics and journalism, Ressa spoke about the importance of “holding your moral line.” She told the students, “As you all move on to take leadership positions, situational ethics will make it seem harder. Know where your integrity lies, and where your North Star is.”
Ressa’s presentation “was an incredibly exciting and enriching learning experience for Potomac’s Upper School community,” Head of School John Kowalik said. “We are grateful to her for sharing her time and insights with us.”
** The Fairfax County Environmental Quality Advisory Council (EQAC) has opened the application period for its student-member term running from July 2022 through June 2023.
The student-member application is open to all interested high-school sophomores and juniors who are in good standing. Officials encourage eligible public-school, private-school, parochial, and home-schooled students to apply.
Applicants must submit a completed application form, a record of courses taken and grades earned in grades 9, 10 and 11, if applicable, and a 500-word essay on an environmental topic of their choosing.
Students interested in serving in this capacity during their junior or senior year should download and complete an application at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/environment-energy-coordination/news/apply-be-next-eqac-student-member-2022. All applications must be received via e-mail at eqac@fairfaxcounty.gov by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, May 4.
EQAC’s primary function is to make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors for improving environmental protection and enhancement. During monthly meetings, the council discusses issues such as water quality, air quality, land use, transportation, solid waste, noise, ecological resources, climate change, energy, hazardous materials, visual and light pollution, and environmental stewardship.
In addition, EQAC holds a public-comment meeting each year, typically in January, to obtain input from the community on issues of environmental concern.
EQAC consists of one citizen representative from each of the county’s nine magisterial districts, four at‑large members and one student representative. Each member is appointed by the Board of Supervisors to serve a three-year term, except the student member, who serves during her or his junior or senior year of high school.
The council generally meets on the second Wednesday of each month, starting at 7:15 p.m.
** Marymount University has announced speakers for its three commencement ceremonies to be held in May.
The events, to be held outdoors on the university’s main campus in Arlington, will comprise the 71st annual commencement since Marymount’s founding in 1950.
“The newest graduates of the mission-based university will hear from three distinguished speakers – the first female Saudi Arabian ambassador to the U.S., Princess Reema; physicist and former NASA research center director Dr. Julian M. Earls; and global financier and philanthropist David M. Rubenstein,” university officials said.
All three speakers will receive honorary degrees during the following ceremonies, which are organized by college with each including undergraduate and graduate students:
• Friday, May 13: College of Health and Education. (Speaker: Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud)
• Saturday, May 14: College of Sciences and Humanities. (Speaker: Dr. Julian M. Earls)
• Sunday, May 15: College of Business, Innovation, Leadership and Technology. (Speaker: David M. Rubenstein)
The ceremonies will include students who qualify for graduation from the fall 2021, spring 2022 and summer 2022 semesters, as well as students who graduated in summer 2021 but did not participate in last year’s ceremonies.
Graduating students have been allotted tickets for distribution to friends and family; the ceremonies also will be livestreamed. For information, see the Website at www.marymount.edu.