Joliet Central High School announces 2018 Mr. and Ms. J

Joliet Central High School seniors Jack Lewis and Lizbeth Perez were named Mr. and Ms. J for the 2017-18 school year.

Mr. and Ms. J is a tradition dating back to 1958, which recognizes the two high school seniors who best represent the ideal students of Joliet Central.

The selection process begins by creating a list of seniors who have achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or above. Next, faculty members select the 10 Mr. J finalists and 10 Ms. J finalists from the list using the criteria of appearance and poise, personality, activities, and community service. Finally, a panel of teachers and community members interviews the finalists.

Prior to the interview and throughout the year, the finalists serve as ambassadors to the school and community. They have spoken with neighborhood organizations, religious communities and service clubs and tutored at Mount Carmel Church and Lively Hope Church on a weekly basis.

Mr. J, Jack Lewis, is the son of Craig and Mary Lewis. While at Joliet Central, he has been on the varsity swim team and as served as the varsity volleyball captain and the manager for the girls volleyball team.

Jack has been inducted into National Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta, and serves as president of both. He is a member of the JC Engineers and has competed in the IDEA State Drafting Competition.

He is an Illinois State Scholar, an AP Scholar, an ACT Pacesetter, and a recipient of the Bausch and Lomb National Science Award. He has taken nine Advanced Placement and dual-credit courses.

Jack will attend the U.S. Air Force Academy, where he plans to major in electrical engineering and become a commissioned officer and a heavy flying pilot.

Ms. J, Lizbeth Perez, is the daughter of Hector and Virginia Perez. She is a member of the Human Relations Club, math team and badminton team. She is a JTHS student ambassador, an Adam Award recipient, a Give Something Back Scholarship recipient, an ACT Pacesetter and an Illinois State Scholar.

Lizbeth has been inducted into the National Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta. She has been awarded the Brown University Presidential Scholarship and plans to attend Brown University, where she will major in mathematics and education.

Runners-up for Mr. J include Gregory Honiotes and Daniel Singh as first and second runner-up respectively, and finalists include Cesar Castillo, Ruben Lopez, Alfonso Rios-Camacho, Marcos Singletary, Hunter Thoms, Dana York and Ladarius Young.

Runners-up for Ms. J include Jashui Zarate and Alexis Bell as first and second runner-up respectively, and finalists include Joanna Zepeda, Rebecca Verchimak, Molly Phimmasene, Karolina Pawlica, Elizabeth Hernandez, Lissett Diaz and Zafiro Aguilar.