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Seniors Melanie Lewis and Brian Jennissen have been named the 2007 "Triple A" (Academics, Arts and Athletics) award winners at Chisago Lakes High School. The selection process included student essays, letters of recommendation by faculty members and an analysis of the students' accomplishments at CLHS.

Brian Jennissen

Jennissen has a cumulative grade point average of 3.99, putting him number 2 of 270 students in the class of 2007. He represented CLHS at Boys State in 2006 and is a member of the National Honor Society. He is a section leader/first chair in the band.

Jennissen has been a three-sport athlete all four years at CLHS. He lettered twice in football. Other football honors include Most Improved Player, Most Valuable Offensive Player, All-Conference Honorable Mention, All-Conference, Star Tribune Athlete of the Week, All-State Honorable Mention, All-Conference Academic and All-State Academic.

For basketball, Jennissen has earned a letter, the "Mr. Academic" award and has been selected All-Conference Academic.

He has two letters, an All-Conference Academic, two All-Conference Honorable Mention, All-Conference and Most Improved awards for track and field.

He has also served as an altar boy and eucharistic minister at church as well as a vacation bible school volunteer group leader.

Melanie Lewis

Melanie Lewis has accumulated an impressive list of academic awards. Her 3.784 Grade Point Average qualified her for Spotlight on Scholarship awards all four years at CLHS. She also holds Student of the Month awards for attendance and for academics.

Lewis has participated in the CLHS choir all four years and has been a member of the Women's Select choir in grades 9-12.

The senior has earned five varsity athletic letters for her contribution to the volleyball, basketball and track teams at CLHS. She also earned North Suburban and Rum River All-Conference recognition for volleyball and basketball.

Lewis has also volunteered her time in the community. She's been a Sunday School teacher and collected canned goods and performed clerical duties at her church. She's also served as an LARA coach/instructor for volleyball and basketball.

Student essays and and faculty recommendations are part of the selection process. The following essays and recommendations are what the students and faculty members wrote.

Student Essays

Brian Jennissen

As I look back on my four years of high school, I realize that I have gained many valuable tools that will help me succeed at the next level of education. While participating in athletics, I learned how to work together with my teammates to achieve success. I also discovered that no one member of a team is more important than another. It takes everyone to get the job done. Aside from that, I came to realize that there is no substitute for hard work. If one wishes to achieve greatness, one must be committed and willing to make sacrifices.

Playing in the high school band taught me some valuable lessons as well. I learned that a good education is a well-rounded one. I think that every student should be required to take some form of fine arts class because it gives you a deeper appreciation of the arts and the beauty of creativity. For me, playing music every day helped relieve some of the stress from schoolwork and sports.

Next fall,I plan on attending a private liberal arts college in order to further advance my education. I feel very prepared for the challenges ahead of me because I know that I have learned many valuable lessons from my experiences with high school athletics and fine arts. I believe that the interpersonal skills, hard work, and a broad educational background are essential keys to having an outstanding college experience.

Melanie Lewis

What do I plan to do after high school? That question has been going through my head since the end of my junior year. It's one of those things that you just think about constantly.

First, the college I would like to attend is UW Eau Claire because I feel it's the right fit for me. They have a very good Business program; it's one of their top five majors at Eau Claire. I would like to earn a degree in accounting and also earn my CPA.

I've been involved in many sports programs. Being in these sports helped me learn how to balance my life. What I mean is it helped me to become a better time manager. I know how to use my time wisely and I've learned not to procrastinate. I've also been involved in choir since middle school and believe it has helped me to communicate with others better. I've achieved many academic awards and I believe receiving these awards showed me that I am intelligent and a hard worker. I believe that this will help me through challenges that I will face in my college years.

Finally, I just would like to say that I have accomplished and achieved so many things that I think it will help me to succeed in college and in life. College may be difficult, but I think I have the right tools to succeed in what ever I challenge myself to.

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