Taos High School has announced its first semester honor roll students.
A total 262 students — out of more than 700 enrolled, according to NMVistas — were recognized for achieving a 3.5 grade point average or higher. In the first semester of 2024, 177 students made the honor roll.
According to Camille Rivera, the dean of students, the school has made significant efforts to recognize honor roll students beyond just a written list. Students who make the honor roll will be rewarded at an assembly with pins and certificates.
“This year is our first solid year where we have the data that we want to have,” Rivera said. “So we’re giving them certificates; they're getting little pins. And then if they get honor roll for the entire year, they'll get an academic letter. We’re trying to make it really special this year, because I think in the past, they knew they made the honor roll, but it was never publicized. It wasn't like [in elementary school], so this year we’re like, ‘Why don’t we make it like elementary school?”
Students who maintain honor roll status for the entire year will also be awarded a white letterman jacket and be eligible to join the National Honor Society.
“If you’ve ever seen the letterman jacket that the athletes wear, it’s like that, but it’s academic,” Rivera said. “So, instead of orange, it’s going to be white. If they have the 3.5 and above and then receive honor roll for the entire year, they’ll receive it.”
Taos High School Principal Emy Martinez-DeHerrera said, “We’re really wanting to give them a letter now, but I’m like, ‘Come on Emy, you have to wait!'”
On Feb. 5, students were able to attend another opportunity, the Taos High School College and Career Fair. Over 40 community partners were in attendance, including Los Alamos National Laboratory, U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, Whataburger and Berkshire Hathaway.
Taos High School Assistant Principal Richard Quintanilla said the event is “85 to 90 percent” organized by a high school student each year, a tradition that began accidentally. Quintanilla said Gracie Goler, a student who offered to reach out to potential community partners, got the ball rolling. Ever since, the student who organizes the event handpicks their successor. This year’s student organizer was Angie Burns Diaz, a former Taos News intern.
One of Quintanilla’s favorite memories of working with Goler was witnessing her pursue her pilot's license.
“Probably 15 years ago, I developed a fear of flying and flying has terrified me,” Quintanilla said. “Gracie would come in and tell me, ‘Oh, Mr. Quintanilla, I’m going to be flying today.’ I remember one day, she told me, 'I’m going to fly solo' and my heart dropped. My own fears were coming into this. I looked at her and said, ‘Gracie, are you scared?’ She looked me straight in the eyes — I’ll never forget the look on her face — but just as serious as you can be, she said, ‘No, this is what I am meant to be. This is what I’m meant to do.'”
When Goler graduated, she left future College and Career Fair organizers a “golden ticket” — a thumb drive loaded up with resources. Today, Goler has her pilot’s license and is studying computer science at St. Louis University. Being able to witness the paths students take is one of the many reasons Quintanilla believes in the fair.
“If I ever fly again, I hope it’s with her,” Quintanilla said. “Seeing all of her potential and the drive she had, it was one of the times that made me think, 'I’m going to be okay as a really old man out there, because people like Gracie are going to be taking care of us all.'”
At future fairs, he hopes to invite more trades-focused partners, which he said a growing number of students are interested in.
“Our students’ achievements are a testament to their resilience and the support of our educators, families and community,” Martinez-DeHerrera said. “We are incredibly proud of their efforts and excited to see the bright futures they are building through their determination and hard work.”
12th grade, 4.0 and above
- Brown, Miquella Isabelle
- Burns Diaz, Angelina Mariana
- Cardenas-Torres, Angel Alberto
- Casias, Santana Gabriella
- Chavira, Jezelle A
- Clayton, Elsie
- Comtois, Noelle E
- Duran, Selene
- Etzel, Alexis
- Flores-Winters, Jaren
- Gallegos, Amadea J
- Garcia, Isabella Charity
- Gonzales, Alexandra Rose
- Heflin, Rowan
- Hennelly, Rowan Cian
- Herrera, Kiara Rose Celestina
- Jeantete, Mia Anjelica
- Ko, Kalila
- Kolman, Ari
- Leon, Damien V
- Limas, Jacqueline A
- Lira, Amy Johanna
- Lovato, Josaiah Jesus
- Manley, Otto F
- Martinez, Alexis Josette
- Martinez, Jake Marcos
- Mondragon, Jasmine Nevea
- Moyer, Alexis Wilson
- Padberg, Maddox Zavala
- Powell, Nicolas Owen
- Quintanilla, Tatyana Marie
- Raschietti, Filippo
- Romero, Alexandra Graciana
- Romero, Antonio Miguel
- Romero, Carlo Rafael
- Romo-Escobar, Juan Jose
- Rosales- Montoya, Santiago Emanuel
- Ruiz, Zaira Yarely
- Ryan, Rosetta Oriole
- Valencia, Marcos Joaquin
- Yven, Matisse Jean-Marie
- Zepeda, Dulce Maria
12th grade, 3.5-3.9
- Armendariz, Alexa
- Barela-Gutierrez, Mia Amor
- Cardenas, Aylin
- Casias, Sierra Hunter
- Cassidy-Burton, Beatrice
- Conlan, Vivella Ruby
- Cordova, Ravi Anil
- Cox, Norah Leigh
- Espinoza, Maydeli
- Ferguson, Israel Taylor Jens
- Flores, Cruzito Juan
- Flores, Julianna C
- Gallegos-Conklin, Ericalyn
- Garcia, Francisco Charles
- Gonzales, Jeremiah Isaiah
- Greywolf, Hayden Milagro
- Hahn, Jordan Edward
- Hernandez, Ivana Alejandra
- Herrera, Vanessa A
- Hoang, Trina Quynh Nhi
- Holmes, Rocket
- Jordan, Monique Crystal
- Jozwiak, Jedrek Magnar
- Lavadie, Lillianna
- Martinez, Isaac R
- Medina, Antonio Filemon
- Minter, Bonnie
- Munoz-Rivera, Ashely
- Munoz-Zamora, Angelica
- Rascon, Damariz E
- Rodriguez-Ramirez, Ruben Oscar
- Romero, Ashlee Gloria Fayth
- Romero, Marissa Angelica
- Romero, Miguel Adam
- Rosales-Moreno, Gabriela
- Saenz, Jaime Daniel
- Sanchez Paredes, Damaris Jasmine
- Smith, Gabrielle Anita
- Tafoya, Andrea Nichole
- Trujillo, Evie C
- Valadez-Little, Sol Tlanezi
- Vigil, Lilliana I
11th grade, 4.0 and above
- Acosta Morales, Geraldine
- Atkinson, Emma
- Bad Hand, Wanbli
- Banuelos-De La Torre, Marilynn
- Barta, Issa
- Bates, Sophia Elaine
- Blaustein, Theo
- Caldwell, Amelia Rose
- Casias, Estrella Rose
- Chavez, Isla N
- Cisneros, Elaina P
- Daffron, Judah
- DeHerrera, Santiago J
- Garcia-Morales, Citlalli
- Gonzales, Angelica M
- Gonzales, Arriana Shantell
- Grundig, Ronja
- Hernandez-Lozano, Jennifer V.
- Jones, Nicholous T
- Juarez Salgado, Madeline
- Kostich, Nadija
- Lage, Lillian Rose
- Mack, Flora
- Martinez, Emilio Miguel
- Martinez, Layla
- Mirabal, Brandon K
- Montoya, Kimberly
- Ortega, Isaiah Jayden
- Ortega, Tirzah Avery
- Ortiz, Camryn Jade
- Padilla, Aaliyah K
- Rodriguez Acosta, Gabriela E
- Rosales-Moreno, Jessica
- Rose, Joaquin Solari
- Rotman, Saul Patrick
- Salazar, Evan Jacob
- Schochet, Cheylah Azlan
- Schreiber, Lucy Jean
- Suazo, Reggie T
- Vargas, David H
- Zamora, Estrella E
11th grade, 3.5-3.99
- Acedo, Jet Andrew
- Allen, Damarcus T
- Castillo, Alyssa M
- Cheromiah, Calila T
- Cook, MairiJane
- Escobedo, Caleb J
- Fresquez, Christian Christopher
- Garcia, Abigail
- Garcia, Jerome Mateo
- Gottschau, Zahra Bella
- Griego, Sierra A
- Harrison, Ulysses
- Hermosillo, Edith
- Hernandez, Saul
- Limas-Quinones, Ired S
- Lovato, Faith Marie
- Lovato, Mariah I
- Lucero, Eli D
- Marquez, Shaun Matthew
- Martinez, Jeremy Angel
- Martinez, Sarah Nicole
- Mutz, Madison Vallie
- Padilla, Isela E
- Quintana, Braelyn Kaylee
- Quintana, Roman
- Quirk, Lucia A
- Ratliff, Isabella Lux
- Renteria, Arturo M
- Rodriguez-Lozano, Yajaira
- Romero, Sarai
- Romero, Trenton A
- Salazar, Kaylee A
- Sanchez, Andrew A
- Shropshire, Celina S
- Suazo, Jaylene Victoria
- Trujillo, Alyssa Ray Laura
- Valdez, Lilyana
- Valdez, Nicholas S
- Weathers, Abigail J
- Winters, Evan Patrick
- Yaqubi, Rayhana
10th grade, 4.0 and above
- Blair, Jaeda A
- Campbell, Mara Marie
- Chavez, Christopher
- Collignon, Ava
- Elsasser, Dusty
- Enriquez, Victor R
- Galer, Olive
- Garcia, Samuel H
- Gonzales, Maliha Victoria
- Goode, Ava Skye
- Gorham, Alaandria B
- Hart, Lili
- Henry, Paxton Mae
- Hickerson, Pepper
- Jeantete, Noah Nate
- Lewis, Ciara M
- Lucero, Isabella Antonia
- Moyer, Carly
- Perez Montoya, Jenea Leanne
- Poston, Samantha S
- Romero, Luciano Rafael
- Romero, Natalia Kaylee
- Sanchez, Nathan Jacob
- Schreiber, Annaleigh Rose
- Struck, Amaya Jada
- Suazo, Anthony Morgan
- Weinman, Kanoa Ryder
- Weisfeld, Kosmo P
- Woodall, Liam Bement
10th grade, 3.5-3.99
- Brown, Kaili Rita
- Castellon, Josiah
- Coca, Aaron A
- Garcia, Isaiah A
- Jaramillo, Lilianna Clare
- Jeantete, Melina Marie
- Lovato, Rosa Maria
- Lucero, Andria J
- MacDonald, Keira
- Mares, Dustin
- Marquez Ortega, Jaziel
- Martinez, Devon R
- Martinez, Reyanna
- Noble, Jazmin Marie
- Ortega, Alejandro P
- Ortiz, Caitlin Hope
- Padilla, Gene M
- Rowlison-Elliott, Logan James
- Streit, Taylor Elizabeth
- Summers, Bowen Scot
- Tafoya, Nicole
- Trujillo, Lilyana Loren
9th grade, 4.0 and above
- Aloia, Amos Finneran Grayson
- Archuleta, Addison
- Baker, Aidan
- Bernal Navarro, Andrea Guadalupe
- Brown, Mariah Ashlynn
- Budd-Rodriguez, Atma
- Campbell, Seamus
- Cortez, LillyRay
- Dean, Asher M
- Dumrese, Richard
- Fullbright, Athena
- Gilroy, Jonah F
- Hurtado, Elia J
- Johnson, Maximo Torres
- King, Kamila Aimee
- Ko, Raziah
- Nykamp, Juniper Rain
- O'Reilly, Bernice Reed
- Ortiz Amdur, Sofia
- Rascon, Aryanah
- Staley, Kaylyn
- Vigil, Marivel
- Villarreal y Montoya, Samuel
- Wannamaker, Ava Marie
9th grade, 3.5-3.99
- Asplund, James River
- Bad Hand, Cante
- Brady, Vincent
- Cardenas, Kiahna Lynn
- Coffman, McKenna E
- Conn, Silas James
- Cruz, Julian L
- Garcia, Gabriel
- Geertsen, Brianna Nichole
- Gonzales, Santiago J
- Hahn, Zoe Jane
- Herrera, Arzyiah Angel Joel
- LeDoux, Adam
- Martin, Haley Evalise
- Montoya, Brianah Serena
- Quintana Jr, Isaiah Drake
- Quintanilla, Jayden S
- Ramos Garcia, Santiago
- Real, Lorena C
- Serrano, Savannah
- Tucker, Leila June
(1) comment
Taos High School Needs an AFJROTC program
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