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Bobby Menges was 5 years old the first time doctors diagnosed him with neuroblastoma, a rare and potentially lethal cancer. He was 9 the second time. 
In between the cancer bouts, he broke a leg so badly that his femur stopped growing. Treatment involved re-breaking the leg and would not have been out of place in a medieval dungeon: "They stuck metal pins in the bones, and every day I'd turn the little knobs on the contraption to pull the bones apart a little bit," he recalled. 
Menges, now 17, is cancer-free, sound of limb and deeply changed by what he went through. 
"It changed my mentality," said Menges, one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors. "I don't like to let days go by when I'm unproductive. I feel like I always have to be doing something because I understand that life is short and you have to use everything up." 
Menges, of Garden City, joined the wrestling team in high school, started a rock band with friends, composed an experimental suite of songs based on the Iliad and raised money for medical research. Last year he raised $95,300 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Man and Woman of the Year Campaign, drawing on a sizable list of email contacts and an innovative twist: Every "ask," or donation request, encouraged the recipient to forward it to 10 more people. 
"This year people are saying, 'I want to beat the kid,' " said Jennifer Taggart, the campaign's senior manager. "He set the bar so high." 
Cancer is still with Menges, but in a good way. "It'll never leave my life and, really, I don't want it to . . ." he said. "I have an obligation to help the people that helped me when I was in treatment." 
HIGHER ED: Menges will attend Duke University and hopes to major in music and math. 
FRESHMAN FAST-FORWARD: 
"Duke is a worldwide university with people from all around the world, different countries, parts of the nation, and it's going to be a great experience to learn from them." 
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY: 
"I had a lot of rough things go on in my childhood . . . instead of wallowing in pity, I took those experiences and turned them into a positive."

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Bobby Menges: Cancer-free, sound of limb, deeply changed

A senior at Garden City High School and a cancer survivor, Robert Menges  composes music and last year raised $95,300 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. (Credit: Newsday / Jessica Rotkiewicz)

Extraordinary Senior: Robert Menges

Newsday

Vivian Utti is quite familiar with the concept and application of paying it forward. The proof is in her dedication to serving her fellow students at Elmont Memorial High School and those in her surrounding community of Valley Stream.
Utti, 17, logged more than 100 hours of community service this year as a Key Club member doing food drives around Elmont, volunteered to work in soup kitchens with the Leo Club of Valley Stream -- a youth extension of the service organization Lions Club, and tutored students in math and SAT prep.
She is editor-in-chief of the school paper, The Elmont Phoenix, and as president of the Future Business Leaders of America, she helped her team secure second place in business presentation at a state competition.
Though Utti is a member of the National Honor Society, she said high school is about more than earning good grades.
"If you don't do the volunteering, you kind of miss out on the person you can even touch," she said. "It really does give you a sense of yourself."
That self-awareness led Utti last year to the Brave New Life Project sponsored by shoe manufacturer Keds. She won an $800 "Change your community, change your life" grant, which she used to purchase SAT preparatory books so she could tutor 10 juniors who weren't able to afford classes up to four times per week from January to May.
"I feel like kids think that if they can't afford the classes that they're just not going to do well," Utti said. "They're just despondent."
The students were grateful and the sessions improved several of their scores, she said. "I really did help to make a difference. It was amazing." 
School counselor Sanju Liclican said Utti's determination and vision prove "she's going to be somebody."
"She's very soft-spoken; you would think she's very shy, but she has just got this commanding presence about her," Liclican said. "The kids just look at her and listen."
That was true when Utti took the reins at Sewanhaka Central High School District's college fair, delegating students to help dozens of college representatives, students and parents navigate the event. "It was like a tightly run ship. I was just so inspired by watching her," Liclican said.
Utti will attend New York University in the fall, where she earned a College of Arts and Science scholarship, and will study computer science and neuroscience. She plans to become a pediatric neurosurgeon. It's a field Utti said she was drawn to given the circumstances of her own birth. She and her twin sister, Shirley, were born 21/2 months premature, and doctors thought the pair wouldn't develop normally.
Utti credits her family with motivating her -- particularly her mother, who earned master's and bachelor's degrees in nursing after emigrating from Nigeria in the mid-1990s.
Roseline Utti, an assistant director of nursing at Queens Hospital Center in Jamaica, envisions a bright future for her daughter. "I'm very, very proud of her . . . I know she's going to reach good heights."

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Vivian Utti is going to be somebody, Elmont Memorial High School counselor says

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Candice Ferrette

David Wolmark always challenged himself academically, but when a serious hiking accident left him bedridden for most of his junior year, he excelled in and out of the classroom. 
In the summer of 2013, Wolmark was leading an expedition through the boundary waters of Minnesota with the Boy Scouts of America. As an Eagle Scout he was an experienced hiker, but during that trek he slipped on rough terrain and fell hip-first onto a rock. Not wanting to abandon his group, Wolmark continued on the trail, using canoe oars as crutches. After hiking in pain for 13 miles back to the base camp, he had emergency surgery to repair his left femoral neck, the uppermost part of the thigh bone. 
"My life was turned upside down," said Wolmark, 17, of Port Washington. 
Months after recovering from the initial injury, he suffered an even worse setback. Avascular necrosis, a rare complication in which the bone tissue begins to die because of a lack of blood supply, had set in. Wolmark had another surgery to hollow out his bone, and for more than six months he had a metal external brace with eight pins sticking out of his body to support him. He left his Port Washington school in December and didn't return for the rest of the academic year. 
Simple things such as wearing clothes, tying his shoes, sitting in a chair and finding a comfortable position to sleep became almost impossible. He didn't have the structure of a regular school day, and his network of friends began to dissolve. 
But Wolmark, one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors, persevered. 
He began home instruction and stayed focused on his schoolwork. In his downtime, he played folk songs on the guitar and even taught himself the banjo and the mandolin while lying on his back. 
"Why not?" Wolmark said as he reflected on his musical undertakings. "I had the time." 
Wolmark even planned events for his fellow Scouts, Troop 7 out of Port Washington, he said. No surprise to guidance counselor Elias Gomez, who called Wolmark a "bright, principled, caring young man." 
Wolmark struggled socially when he returned to school as a senior. His grades, however, were stronger than ever and he was among the top of the class. 
Wolmark joined the high school robotics team and won first place in the Long Island Regional and second place in the New York State Finals of the NY Automotive Technology Competition. He took the SATs and also designed an acoustic guitar for his senior project. 
"David has the right combination of academic ability, intellectual curiosity and personal drive to achieve whatever goal he sets for himself," Gomez said. 
This fall, Wolmark will head to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in upstate Troy, where he will study mechanical and aerospace engineering. He said he is looking forward to positioning himself for a career at a large engineering firm and then studying toward an advanced degree, probably a doctorate. 
Despite a grueling year, Wolmark said he considers himself lucky to have made a full recovery. 
"It gave me so much appreciation for what people with disabilities go through in their everyday life," he said.

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Extraordinary senior: David Wolmark, Paul D. Schreiber High School

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Denise M. Bonilla

Colleen Flynn has a dream and a dream school, and she's not giving up on either one. 
Flynn was accepted at 17 high-ranking colleges but not her top choice -- the University of Pennsylvania. Undeterred, she turned down all 17 offers and plans to reapply to UPenn after studying at Suffolk County Community College for six months. 
"It's about the right fit," said Flynn, <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none;">one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors. "I'm very stubborn and I'm also very frugal, so I don't want to invest in a college where I know I'm not going to be happy and it's going to be too much of a financial burden for my family and myself." 
Flynn's determination was born of tragedy. When she was 13, her mother, Maureen, was diagnosed with triple negative inflammatory breast cancer and later died. Accompanying her mother to Boston for clinical trials, Flynn, a resident of Commack, became fascinated by science but also inspired by young cancer patients. 
The hospital "fostered my passion for research and science and helping others," she said. "I feel like I really can empathize with kids who have cancer because I saw my mom unfortunately deteriorate before my eyes." 
Flynn, 17, has worked with other students on genetics research, studying the correlation between diabetes and cancer. She also conducted research that led to the creation of a thermometer that produces more accurate readings. 
But last summer, after earning one of 220 nationwide spots for a paid business internship at a nonprofit, Flynn realized there's "more to life than a lab." Her dream is to be a pediatric oncologist with her own international health clinic and run her own not-for-profit. 
"I want to combine my passion for science and research and my love for languages and business," she said. "I want to travel and help people who don't necessarily have the luxuries that I have." 
HIGHER ED: 
Flynn will attend Suffolk County Community College and apply to transfer to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business. She would like to be a public health major. 
FRESHMAN FAST-FORWARD: 
"I'm looking forward to figuring out who I want to be and who I want to surround myself with. I want to expand my horizons. . . I definitely want to study abroad." 
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY: 
"Even when things get really tough, I'm one of those people who try to remain positive and bounce back. I like to think of myself as resilient."

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Colleen Flynn's determination born of tragedy

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Michael R. Ebert

Nicholas Vinberg took a rare day off from school two years ago -- on May 24, 2013, to be exact.
The date marked the funeral for Jonathan Kaloust, 23, a Massapequa alum and Navy SEAL who was killed when his Humvee overturned during a training accident in Kentucky.
Vinberg, a patriotic teen from Massapequa Park with a self-proclaimed "strong calling" to serve the United States, wanted to honor the late SEAL in his own way despite never having met Kaloust or his family. He walked to town holding an American flag and stood for five hours across the street from the service at the Massapequa Funeral Home.
"My heart was broken, so I asked my mom if I could take off from school and she didn't think twice," Vinberg, 18, said. "Whenever I hold a flag, I'm doing it for all the people who are giving their lives."
Vinberg's patriotism began at an early age when his mother painted an American flag in his room that spanned the length and width of the sloped ceiling above his bed. He also has the armed forces in his genes: His grandfather was an Army Ranger and Korean War POW who died a month after he was born.
But patriotism aside, it's Vinberg's work ethic that has most caught the eye of his teachers. To challenge himself, he omitted a lunch period last year to simultaneously take chemistry and physics, followed by double periods of AP physics and calculus this year.
The hard work has paid off. Vinberg is a member of his school's National Honor Society, High Honor Roll and Principal's List -- the latter of which he said recognizes those with an average of 94 or above.
To remain focused, Vinberg often reads from a small black notebook filled with hundreds of inspirational quotes.
"Nick sets incredibly high standards for himself and consistently meets his personal expectations with grace and modesty," said his guidance counselor, Allison Fifield. "He is an extremely ambitious young man."
In addition, Vinberg is captain of the varsity soccer team and a member of the varsity lacrosse and swimming teams. He played a key role in helping those teams win state championships for the 2013-14 school year. He also plays trumpet in wind ensemble and is a member of Senior Nation, a group of upperclassmen who mentor the district's younger students.
Outside of school, Vinberg is a lifeguard for the Town of Oyster Bay and is a buddy for special-needs children competing in the Empire State Games at Mitchel Field in Uniondale. He will attend the New Mexico Military Institute's Service Academy Preparatory Program, with the intention of going to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point the following year. Vinberg said he is "looking forward to the strict and regimented lifestyle" military schools provide.
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY:
"Although I don't think of myself as extraordinary, I see things differently than most kids my age. I believe there are many people in this world who are going through tough times, and a few words or a simple smile can go a long way and pick them up."

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Nicholas Vinberg has 'strong calling' to serve

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Joie Tyrrell

La-Niyah Ortiz wasn't the only one who was nervous on her first day at Bay Shore High School.
Ortiz is legally blind and spent most of her education in specialized settings that were well-equipped to accommodate her. Ortiz, 18, is a twin who was born prematurely. She was diagnosed with retinopathy of prematurity, abnormal blood vessel development in the retina of the eye. It occurs in infants who are born too early and is a degenerative condition. She also has nystagmus, rapid involuntary movement of the eyes.
As she entered her senior year, educators agreed to send Ortiz, of Bay Shore, to public school, where she would have to learn to be more independent and advocate for herself. She was unsure about the change.
"I don't know if it was more fear or paranoia," Ortiz said of starting classes last fall. "I think it was more of a fear -- I was never in a public school setting. I just didn't know what to expect."
Neither did her guidance counselor, Laura Santini.
"I also had a little anxiety," Santini said. She worried that the school, which has nearly 2,000 students, and its staff "would not be able to accommodate her physically and emotionally . . . it was a little bit of a learning curve on both ends."
To perform her schoolwork, Ortiz uses large print and an iPad or laptop that can magnify text and respond to voice commands. She took both special-education and mainstream classes at Bay Shore and did learn to advocate for herself.
This summer, Ortiz will work with visually impaired children in a program run by the New York State Commission for the Blind. She will also spend time with her family, including her twin sister, Sha-Niyah.
As she prepares to graduate with a Regents diploma, Ortiz said the switch was worth it.
"It worked out very well -- in fact, for the best," she said.
Santini would agree, noting that by the end of senior year, Ortiz "really became stronger . . . I could see a huge transformation."
HIGHER ED:
Ortiz will study psychology at Manhattanville College.
FRESHMAN FAST-FORWARD:
Ortiz said she is looking forward to getting "into my major as soon as I can. I can't wait to study psychology."
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY:
"I would say my visual impairment. Everyone is always asking me 'Do I feel sad that I can't see like others?' But I am, like, 'No.' There is nothing to feel bad about."

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La-Niyah Ortiz, legally blind, advocates for herself

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Josh Landsberg wasn't prepared to give up the pizza and hero sandwiches that had long been a staple of his diet, fueling the four-sport athlete and scholar after rigorous workouts and study sessions. 
But that's exactly what he had to do after he was diagnosed with celiac disease in the 10th grade. 
The hereditary autoimmune disorder is what had long made him have difficulty processing gluten, a protein found in rye, barley, wheat, couscous and other grains and starches. Though it was tough for him to adjust to a new diet, he told friends not to worry, that there were people in the world with far greater burdens. 
It's still difficult for Landsberg, 18, to watch friends dine with ease on the foods he once adored, but he's learned to cope. 
"At the end of the day, it's only food," said Landsberg, one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors. "I feel blessed that it's manageable for me." 
In his role as student ambassador for the National Celiac Disease Society, Landsberg, who lives in Jericho, helps manage its fundraising events. Outside of sports and charity work, he's fascinated with world languages. 
"When I study a language, it's almost like I know what it feels like to actually be in that culture," he said. "I took French in middle school and loved it, and I wanted to see how different Chinese would be. I enjoy the contrast between all three languages [including English], and I plan on studying as many as I can in college." 
Aristea Kakounis, Landsberg's Advanced Placement U.S. History teacher, said he was always more interested in learning than in his grades, though he always scored high. 
"He loved the story that came with history," Kakounis said. "It's rare to find a kid like that." 
HIGHER ED: 
Landsberg will attend Duke University. 
FRESHMAN FAST-FORWARD: 
"I'm really looking forward to meeting a ton of different people from all over the world." 
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY: 
"When I think about something and I know I want to do it, I work as hard as I can to achieve it -- in the classroom and out."

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Josh Landsberg gives up pizza to cope with celiac disease

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Inspiration was close at hand when Brianna Cea needed an idea worthy of a Girl Scout Gold Award. Thoughts of the military, patriotism and public service came to mind, probably because they're in her DNA. 
Cea, 17, a student at Ward Melville High School in East Setauket and&nbsp;<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none;">one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors, is a chief petty officer in the United States Naval Cadet Corps, which is based at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Northport. 
Her father, Brian, is a New York police sergeant who served in the Air Force and Army Reserves. He is also a descendant of Josiah Bartlett, a physician, Revolutionary War patriot and New Hampshire governor who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. 
The Gold Award is the Girl Scout's highest honor. To earn hers, Cea, of East Setauket, completed a twofold project -- the Operation Sisterhood campaign to bring more awareness to the roles of women in the military, and the Patriot League club, which promotes dedication to those who serve their country. 
"I wanted to show kids that patriotism isn't an old-fashioned, right-wing conservative idea, and that by serving your community as an active citizen, everyone can be a patriot in their own way," Cea said. 
She recalled falling in love with the military when she joined the Cadet Corps four years ago. "They really encourage the honor, courage and commitment lifestyle," Cea said of the military. "My parents always taught me the importance of honoring those who have sacrificed for us to be here today." 
She and her fellow cadets wear naval uniforms and perform military drills, and Cea noted that she attended boot camp and advance training and learned to drive military vehicles. Still, she found that her gender meant she had to learn to do battle in an unexpected way. 
"The male cadets would say not to put me in charge although I was the highest ranking in my group," Cea said. "That's something in the military culture; there are a lot more guys than girls. I was determined to show I could be as good or better than any male leading a mission. I gained respect." 
With Operation Sisterhood, Cea and other girls visited Suffolk County youth groups and schools to conduct workshops on the history of women in the military. 
"We showed girls can do anything," Cea said, and that there are a variety of jobs open to women in the military. Letters of support were written to women serving in Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq and the Korean peninsula. 
The Patriot League club promotes and supports servicewomen and men through fundraisers and other activities. 
Cea said she would like to be a Navy attorney and eventually enter politics. She will study political science at George Washington University or Binghamton University. Wherever she goes, she said, she's looking forward to "all of the opportunities that college yields and meeting students with the same interests you have." 
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story gave the incorrect location of where the cadet corps is based.

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Extraordinary senior: Brianna Cea, Ward Melville High School

Military, patriotism in teen's DNA

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Kilian Duclay knows well the power of the sea. It has a hold over him that he wants others to feel, too. 
Duclay, a student at Walt Whitman High School in Huntington Station and one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors, has spent the past two years introducing military veterans to his family's pastime, sailing on Oyster Bay, as a form of therapy. 
"It clears my mind," Duclay, 18, said of sailing. "I don't think of anything. That's a reason why we decided to bring veterans, PTSD-suffering veterans. If it's therapeutic for us, it must be therapeutic for them." 
Duclay, who lives in Huntington Station, said his family of six has taken roughly 50 veterans on sailing trips, including a handful of regulars who come every week. Many are Vietnam veterans in their 60s, he said, though some served in Iraq and Afghanistan. 
Duclay and brother Sean, 16, are in the process of incorporating their organization, Sail Ahead, into a nonprofit. When he begins his freshman year at Stony Brook University -- where he plans to major in atmospheric and oceanic sciences -- Duclay said he is looking forward to also keeping Sail Ahead afloat. 
The Duclays operate out of Oakcliff Sailing Center in Oyster Bay. In the winter, the brothers use a small fleet of Hobie 16s -- sleek, two-man sailboats that offer "more the adrenaline-junky kind of experience," Duclay said. In the summer, they ride on the family's more spacious 40-foot Beneteau sailboat. 
Duclay said he started sailing with his parents as an infant and began learning the sport at age 6 or 7. Two years ago, he raced a 74-foot catamaran around an island in France. 
But he said dismal statistics about veterans -- among them that 22 veterans commit suicide every day, according to a 2013 report by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs -- began to stick in his head, prompting him to change sailing from a hobby to a mission. 
The Duclays reached out to the nonprofit New York State Troopers Marine Corps Association, which connected the family with some veterans. They also contacted Veterans of Foreign Wars posts and the Northport VA Medical Center. 
Duclay said he liked watching some veterans find moments of peace out on the bay. But he said they had a way of humbling him, just like the sea did. 
"I can't really explain it, but I always think that when they were in war, when they were fighting for our country, they were my age," he said. "They were 18, 19, 20. I think, 'Holy cow, if I went to war, like they did at my age, I would hope there would be people like me who wanted to help.' " 
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY? 
"I have a European family. My dad is French; my mom's parents are from Spain and Cuba. We're really close. Everything we do is always together. I need that close friendship and that love for one another, and I guess that's why I put so much love into the veterans."

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Kilian Duclay sails ahead by helping veterans

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Jennifer McDermott has the skepticism of a scientist, so when she learned she was accepted to the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology, naturally she spent an entire day thinking it was a mistake.
On March 14, the unofficial holiday celebrating the mathematical constant Pi, the university released its admission decisions on a special website. When McDermott logged on and saw she had made the cut, the computer crashed and she was unable to go back to confirm her acceptance.
"I didn't believe it at all," she recalled. "My mom started crying. Everyone was celebrating, but I really didn't believe it. I didn't tell anyone. I didn't post anything on Twitter or anything. I was just so nervous," said McDermott, 18, of Shirley.
McDermott -- who is valedictorian of her class and has conducted physics research at Brookhaven National Laboratory -- was just being the unpretentious young woman her teachers and peers have grown to admire. She received a personal acceptance letter from MIT a day later.
McDermott traces her interest in science back to her parents -- both are in the engineering and technical fields -- and her maternal grandparents, who emigrated from Calabria, Italy, in 1960. Her grandfather had a telescope, which was her first introduction to science.
"There was a language barrier, so we had to bond in other ways," she said.
McDermott is captain of the varsity soccer and basketball teams. She plays the violin and is the president of the school's symphonic orchestra.
As president of her high school's student government, she helped bring back an event called Battle of the Classes, a competitive field day for seniors and juniors. McDermott said it's the project she's most proud of because it united students and revived school spirit.
"Everyone being so excited about something was the most satisfying feeling ever," she said.
HIGHER ED:
McDermott will attend MIT and hopes to major in mathematics.
FRESHMAN FAST-FORWARD: 
She is looking forward to "being around some incredible people and learning from everyone."
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY:
"I'm passionate about everything I do and I truly care about everything I do. I wouldn't do all of it otherwise."

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Unpretentious Jennifer McDermott does it all

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Diana Guzman has a strategy for the new-kid jitters: She literally joins the club. 
Guzman, <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none;">one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors, arrived from the Dominican Republic three years ago. To combat the unease she felt from being in a new environment, one of the first things she did when she got to Central Islip High School was join the Multicultural Club. It worked so well for her that she encourages other immigrant schoolmates to do the same. 
"They were trying to raise awareness of the different cultures since we live in such a diverse place," Guzman, 19, said of the club's members. 
She enjoyed the multicultural interaction in the club so much that she started bringing some of her own ideas to the table. 
Guzman, who lives in Central Islip, became club president in her senior year and became the first student to write in Spanish for the school newspaper. "There were many students who didn't speak English, so they couldn't read the paper," she said. 
Guzman's other bright idea quadrupled the club's membership from a handful of students to about 20 under her leadership. The boost was a result of making sure the group met at times when there weren't conflicts with other school activities. 
Guzman wants to eventually work in human resources to continue her exposure to diverse cultures. 
"It's important that we know about different people so we don't have stereotypes," she said. 
HIGHER ED: 
Guzman will study business administration at Suffolk County Community College. 
FRESHMAN FAST-FORWARD: 
"I hope to experience the different activities and professors who've been around and have lots of experience." 
WHAT MAKES YOU EXTRAORDINARY: 
"I just like to bring who I am to the table and get more Spanish students involved in activities in school."

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Diana Guzman strives for multicultural interaction

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Yaakov Kaminetsky remembers his first meeting four years ago with a young boy he volunteered to tutor, because he found himself at gunpoint -- Nerf gunpoint, that is. 
Kaminetsky was a freshman at Davis Renov Stahler Yeshiva High School for Boys in Woodmere when he began working with Moshe, a fourth-grader with attention-deficit disorder. Moshe, with his finger on the trigger, jokingly told Kaminetsky that there would be no homework done that evening. 
Eventually, the persistent Kaminetsky was successful in getting Moshe into his chair to work. Kaminetsky,&nbsp;<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none;">one of Newsday's 12 Extraordinary Seniors, arrived at Moshe's house every week for two-hour sessions, part of the required 120 hours of community service he needed to graduate. 
"I didn't have any tricks," Kaminetsky, 17, said of breaking through to Moshe. "It really was just a matter of patience." 
The most fulfilling part of the sessions, Kaminetsky said, is that the learning often went beyond the academics of math, science and social studies. Sometimes the two would just hang out in Moshe's room for a while to chat about school and the third-grader's life in general. 
"He taught me that even when one is struggling mightily, all it takes is a little hard work and help from others, to completely change your own attitude and behavior," Kaminetsky said. "It really has been an amazing opportunity to be able to give a little of myself, and receive more than I ever could have asked for in return." 
Kaminetsky, of Woodmere, has taken eight Advanced Placement classes and was named a National Merit Commended Scholar and an AP Scholar with Distinction. 
Kaminetsky is also a member of his school's mock trial, debate, college bowl, math and basketball teams -- the latter of which placed second this year in the Metropolitan Yeshiva High School Athletic League. 
Kaminetsky raised $3,000 for Yachad/National Jewish Council for Disabilities by collecting pledges from family and friends based on his participation in Miami's Half Marathon. And school officials said he has put in six to 10 extra hours a week learning the Talmud. 
In college, Kaminetsky said he is most looking forward to "being exposed to a higher level of learning." He will study in Israel for one or two years before enrolling at Yeshiva University in Manhattan. 
"Yaakov is a leader and his friends look up to him and the example he sets," said Madeline Rosenberg, the school's guidance counseling director. "Often, in order to achieve a goal for the greater good, he puts himself in situations that are out of his comfort zone."

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Yaakov Kaminetsky achieves 'for the greater good'

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2015 Extraordinary Seniors

Meet LI's 12 Extraordinary Seniors

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Nick Cannon, host of the Wild 'N Out Live show at Barclays Center, visited students at Hempstead and Roosevelt high schools on Friday.

'Excited about entertainment'

12-year-old Cesar Albarracin Guncay, a 6th grader in Sag Harbor, died during a rafting field trip in the Poconos after the raft overturned in the river.

'Cesar was a cherished member of our school family'

NewsdayTV's Macy Egeland speaks to actor Gary Sinise about the Wantagh Union Free School District partnering with his foundation to raise money for field trips to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, as well as a commemorative 9/11 statue in front of Wantagh High School.

'To make sure those students never forget'

Sara Lopez Garcia recorded an address to her class from her native Colombia. NewsdayTV's Andrew Ehinger reports.

'Never underestimate your strength'

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Hofstra seniors Jaime Yoos and Riana Kamath speak about the difficulties college graduates face in the competitive job market on LI.

'It felt like my resume went into a dark hole'

Chaminade twins John and Joseph Gomes were named valedictorian and salutatorian, a first for the all-boys Catholic school in Mineloa.

Twins make val and sal history

A peer mentoring program at Shoreham-Wading River High School brings students together through the joy of music.

'Enjoy the process together'

With college decision time looming, Newsday has some tips for what to keep in mind while visiting Long Island campuses. NewsdayTV's Jamie Stuart reports.

Take notes, taste the food and more

Reports of cybersecurity incidents in our schools are on the rise. NewsdayTV's Doug Geed reports.

'Schools are an easy target'

Jesse Findling, of Massapequa Park, made a stop at his alma mater on Monday. NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa reports.

'He just followed his dream'

A federal judge approved an agreement this week to phase out the Saving on a Valuable Education, or SAVE, Plan. The move could affect millions of borrowers. Newsday's experts break it down.

'A lot of uncertainty'

The East Meadow school district is asking taxpayers to vote yes on a $71.5 million capital improvement bond. NewsdayTV's Virginia Huie reports.

'It's good for the school district'

The Connetquot school district must decide whether to keep its new nickname, the T-Birds, or go back to Thunderbirds in the ongoing mascot fight. NewsdayTV's Macy Egeland talks with a panel of experts.

Island Insider: Mascot fight on LI

Dental professor Ira B. Lamster said the break with Stony Brook University was unrelated to the funding he received from Epstein. Newsday investigative reporter Joshua Solomon has more.

$100G grant from Epstein

A new report says the risks of AI in education are greater than the benefits. NewsdayTV spoke with a panel of experts on the topic.

A look at the risks of AI in education

It's been 40 years since the space shuttle Challenger disaster. Long Islanders remember where they were on Jan. 28, 1986.

'We had no idea what would transpire'

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NYU researchers are surveying the Eastern box turtle population to better understand how they are faring against habitat destruction, roadways and global warming.`

Turtle-sniffing dogs searching LI for science

Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. spoke with NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa about what life is like for the Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann in jail.

Rex Heuermann's life behind bars

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is back for a second stint with the Giants. Head coach John Harbaugh on Wednesday said Beckham seems healthier and Beckham said he is looking forward to making the most of the opportunity.

Odell Beckham Jr. back with the Giants

Recently passed state auto insurance reforms could help lower car insurance rates as much as 10% for New York drivers, according to some estimates. NewsdayTV's Virginia Huie reports.

NYS takes crack at lowering auto insurance premiums. Here's what that means for LI.

NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits the Long Island Game Farm for an inside look at the incredible hands-on wildlife encounters there.

Out East: What's new at the Long Island Game Farm

If approved, it would be the first new hospital on Long Island since 1980. Newsday business reporter James T. Madore has more.

NYU Langone plans new hospital in Melville 

NewsdayTV's Elisa DiStefano visited Main Event, an entertainment center that recently opened in Deer Park.

Arcade, bowling and giant claw machine at Main Event 

Newsday food writer Erica Marcus helps make a strawberry crunch ice cream at Coyle's Ice Cream in Islip.

Making ice cream at Coyle's in Islip

Rockville Centre's Lavert Henderson-Hobbs has been a Knicks' season-ticket holder since 1969.

Rockville Centre's Lavert Henderson-Hobbs a Knicks' season-ticket holder since 1969

NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa visits Chubs Meats in Medford to try The Brunson, a sandwich inspired by the New York Knicks' star player.

Trendy Bites: Trying a Jalen Brunson-inspired sandwich

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Newsday is highlighting the passionate, engaging and innovative educators of Long Island with its Teacher Spotlight feature.

Teacher Spotlight

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Residents in LI's more than 120 school districts weighed in on board candidates, budgets and propositions. See how your district voted. For additional information, read our article here.

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