My name is Sarah Barcelona and I am a rising senior at Lyons Township High School in La Grange, Illinois.  I started running in fourth grade with the Chicago Flyers Track Club and immediately fell in love with the sport.  After running in a countless number of youth cross country meets and 5K road races, I was so excited to take my passion to the next level in high school.  Choosing to run high school cross country and track has been the best decision I have ever made, as it has introduced me to some of my best friends and allows me to push myself to my very limits day in and day out.  My personal bests include a 4:59 1600, a 10:43 3200, and a 16:58 for three miles.  Some of my senior year goals include a 4:55 mile, a 10:30 3200, a 16:40 three mile, and all state finishes at both the cross country and track state meets.  Above all else, I want to help my team to another top 3 finish at cross country state this year.

Academically, I enjoy challenging myself with a rigorous course load.  I have achieved straight A’s in all classes I have taken, except for one B+ in my freshman Geometry Honors course.  Freshman and sophomore year I was in the highest levels of classes offered at my school for all courses, and I also took AP Physics I my sophomore year instead of junior year.  Junior year I took 3 AP courses (Biology, English Language and Composition, and U.S. History), and I plan on taking 5 AP courses my senior year (Psychology, Calculus, English Rhetoric, Spanish, and Art History).  My unweighted GPA is a 3.97, and my weighted GPA is a 5.25.  My SAT score is a 1430 and my ACT score is pending as I am taking it a couple of times this summer.  My dedication to school and serving the community has helped me earn a spot in National Honors Society as well as my school’s honor roll.

Besides my love for running, I am also passionate about science, animals, and art.  I have been a junior counselor for a summer medical camp for middle schoolers (known as “Body Trek”) for the past four years.  Run by the Robert Crown Center, this camp has given me opportunities to lead campers through various dissections and teach them about the human body and its systems.  I also love animals and am a volunteer at a local animal shelter where I clean cat cages, provide fresh food and water, and hope to look in on some surgeries at the vet clinic coming soon.  These two interests of mine are in tune with my desire to major in biology in college and pursue a career in either the medical field or animal sciences.  Moreover, I have always enjoyed art and have taken a couple of drawing and painting courses in high school, where some of my work was featured in art shows.  I am also very excited to take AP Art History this next year in school as I know it will be catered towards my art interests.  In my free time I also enjoy cooking and photography.  For more information, please email me at sarahbarcelona2019@gmail.com.