Born in Macomb County, MI, Mariah Micallef, her sisters, and her mother have moved through the states before finally settling in La Porte, Indiana, a city they are proud to call home.
"We love the strong sense of community, the schools, and the peaceful country setting," Micallef said. "It has been very beneficial to me to live and grow up in such a close-knit community."
Micallef is currently finishing up her senior year at La Porte High School where she is very involved in the Creative Writing Community, serving as one of the Editors for her school's Creative Writing magazine, Reflections, which shares many short stories, poetry, and prose written by her fellow students. She is also very active in various extracurricular activities ranging from academics and community service to school spirit and sports. For the past three years, Micallef has participated in Pop Warner Cheer and has danced with the La Porte High School Slicerettes dance team. She also enjoys being a part of academic teams at her high school. One of the highlights of her time on academic teams at LaPorte High School was participating in the State Competition in Spell Bowl a couple of years ago. Micallef is a two-time La Porte County Spelling Bee Champion, with fifteen first place titles as well. Micallef is also very involved in volunteer activities, such as the Girl Reserves.
"I love helping my community and those in it," Micallef said. "My favorite volunteer activities, however, have been tutoring and stuffing stockings for needy children at Christmas-time."
For the past few summers, Micallef has spent two weeks in a Gifted Academic Camp at Purdue University, where she learns extensively about various subjects such as computer science, psychology, engineering, chemistry, veterinary medicine, pre-med, and many other subjects.
"I value the time I have spent at Purdue University, because it fostered a respect and appreciation for education and it has provided me with focus as to what interests and inspires me," Micallef said. "I am deeply honored to say I will be attending the Purdue Honors College for Health and Human Services in the fall. I will also be training to be a camp counselor at Purdue's camps this summer, and I can't wait!"
Along with all of her previous accomplishments, Micallef now has the honor of being a Lilly Foundation Scholarship recipient. After applying in the fall of her senior years, Micallef went through a grueling process that involved a lot of waiting to hear word from the foundation board and a nerve-wracking final interview when she found out she had been chosen as one of ten final students. When she received word that she had been awarded a full tuition scholarship, she could not contain herself.
"It has been life-altering to win a full tuition scholarship to the college I have already fostered deep ties and connections to. I encourage all young people to trust in themselves and their aspirations," Micallef said. "Even when faced with adversity, working hard and believing in your abilities will being success. The small mistakes along with the way help you learn and develop into a better person. Everything adds up to who you are."
Congratulations and best of luck to Miss Micallef in her future endeavors.