Costa Mesa honors students

Christine Carrillo

Hilary Havens, a senior at Costa Mesa High School, has published two

original theorems in number theory and lectured alongside UC Irvine

professors.

Lindsay Freeman, a senior at Estancia High School, plans on

earning a double major at Harvard University in international

relations and government. She aspires to become a senator and

ultimately an ambassador to a Third-World country.

These are two of the young men and women honored by the Costa Mesa

Chamber of Commerce on Friday during the 24th annual Scholarship

Breakfast. For their scholastic achievements, the students were

honored with the Les Miller Outstanding Student Award.

“It shows you that there are high achievers at all the schools,”

said Ed Fawcett, president of the chamber. “We have nothing to be

ashamed of by our campuses and education here. This is a milestone

... and it’s nice to see the students honored appropriately.”

Along with honoring the top 5% of high school students from

Estancia and Costa Mesa High Schools, the chamber also highlighted

the achievements of students from Back Bay Continuation High School,

Orange Coast College and Vanguard University.

“To me, this is a celebration of hard work,” said David Brooks, a

trustee with the Newport-Mesa Unified School District. “It’s a great

celebration, and it’s nice to see a broad base of the community

represented. There’s something for everyone here.”

Students, representing the various educational programs within the

city, received a plaque along with a small scholarship from one of

the several businesses within Costa Mesa. Thanks to the participation

of a number of businesses, the chamber was able to provide its

honorees with $4,000 in scholarships for the first time in its

24-year history.

High grade-point averages and academic awards weren’t all these

students had achieved.

“In the Newport-Mesa school district, we have an unique graduation

requirement for community service, and many of these students far

exceed the requirement,” said Debbie Davis, principal at Back Bay.

“It’s a reflection of our district and our students and the values

that we hold.”

“It’s all about the support from my parents and my school,”

18-year-old Freeman said. “I have a passion for serving my community.

It’s nice to know there are people out there that wanted to recognize

us, and it’s nice to see the future.”