NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Kathleen Millard, principal of McCann Technical School, has announced that James Francis Nowak Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. James Nowak of Adams, is the valedictorian and Jon Olaf Oleson, son of Mr. and Mrs. Einar Oleson of Florida, is the salutatorian for the graduating class of 2011.
Nowak is a senior in the computer-assisted drafting and design program. He is a recipient of the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship, the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendent's Award for Academic Excellence and the Principal's Award for his outstanding contributions and commitment to the McCann community.
He is an active member and chapter officer of SkillsUSA and has won several competitions including silver medals for automated manufacturing in 2010 and in engineering technology in 2011 at the state level. He is a member of the pre-engineering program, Project Lead The Way, National Honor Society, Yearbook Committee and School Council, and shop advisory board student representative. In addition to his academic and technical achievements, Nowak is also a participant and captain of both varsity baseball and golf and the recipient of the McCann Athlete of the Year trophy.
Nowak will attend Rensselaer (N.Y.) Polytechnic Institute in the fall, majoring in engineering.
Oleson, a senior in the machine technology program, is the recipient of the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship and the RPI medal and scholarship in 2010. He is an active SkillsUSA member and won a gold medal in "mechatronics" at the state and national levels in 2010 and a silver medal at this year's state competition. He is a member of the National Honor Society, the pre-engineering program and Project Lead The Way, and a student representative for the machine technology advisory board.
Oleson will attend Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in the fall, majoring in physics and math.
Both students will graduate from McCann Technical School with high honors on June 8.
iBerkshires.com welcomes critical, respectful dialogue. Name-calling, personal attacks, libel, slander or foul language is not allowed. All comments are reviewed before posting and will be deleted or edited as necessary.
