Whiz Kid’s Age: 18
Whiz Kid’s School: Maine South
Earlier:
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Whiz Kid’s Accomplishment: In June, Pierre graduated from Maine South as one of the eight Maine Scholars – the school’s equivalent to valedictorian – from a class of over 600 students. The Scholars make up the top 1 percent of the graduating class.
In February, Pierre and a team of 11 other Maine South students won the regional competition for Argonne National Laboratory’s Rube Goldberg machine contest, held at Navy Pier. Students had to build a complicated machine that took at least 20 steps to water a plant. Their winning contraption, Pierre related, involved 63 steps, and took three months to build.
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This fall, Pierre will be attending Loyola University of Chicago, where he will be undertaking a pre-med course of study.
Whiz Kid’s Key to Awesomeness: Between his sophomore and junior years, Pierre participated in a week-long program, the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine, which took place at UIC Chicago. The program presented attendees the opportunity to observe operations and other medically-related activities. “It was the highlight of the summer, and it settled me on going into the medical field,” he said. A subsequent volunteering stint his junior year at Cambridge Nursing & Rehab Center in Skokie (where his mother works) reinforced his affinity for medicine.
In addition to maintaining a high grade point average, Pierre participated in marching and concert band for all four years at Maine South, playing trumpet the first three years and baritone his senior year. He was also involved in French Club and Adventure Club and played lacrosse.
Noting that all the sciences – particularly biology – interest him a lot (with math a close second), Pierre is planning to become a surgeon.
“I like helping people,” he said. “I feel it’s right for me.”
