On May 18, 2021, Aliso Niguel’s senior class was honored at the Senior Awards. Each year, the school hosts an award ceremony to recognize the hard work of the graduating class over the four years they were at Aliso. This year, with COVID-19 restrictions, the ceremony looked a little different.

  Due to the pandemic, the event was held on the football field with socially distanced chairs filling up the field, while parents sat on the bleachers. Students were able to take their masks off if they have been vaccinated. 

  The night started off with the award for “Academic Distinction;” this award recognized students who maintained an overall GPA of 3.5-3.9 over the course of four years. After this award, the Valedictorians were honored; these are students who had an overall GPA of 4.0 or higher all four years.

  Students who also received local scholarships were also recognized by the different organizations. AP scholars were also recognized based on how well they have done on their AP exams over the years. Additionally, members of National Honor Society, California Scholarship Federation, and people who received the Seal of Biliteracy were honored.

  In terms of sports, the male and female athletes of the year received a trophy for their excellence in their respective sport. For male athlete of the year, Justin Yoon was given the title for his participation in basketball and lacrosse. Female athlete of the year was given to Emily Richards, who has excelled in cross country and track.

  Another memorable moment from the night was when Catherine Deal, the 2021 Scholar of Scholars, was applauded for her hard work. The Scholar of Scholar is the person with the highest GPA of the entire senior class, making it quite the achievement.

  The night ended with the announcement of the Wolverine of the Year. The five nominees were Anchal Bhaskar, Adele Giovanniello, Evan Comiskey, Dylan Beveridge, and Emily Richards. Each department chose students who were dedicated and participated in their classes, and the nominees were narrowed down to five. The award ended up going to Adele Giovanniello.

  Senior Awards was a night of celebration for the Class of 2021, who has had a far from normal senior year. The next time they will all be together like this will be graduation where students will officially bid farewell to high school.