Meet the scholars leading Centereach High School’s Class of 2025
TBR News Media sent a Q&A to local salutatorians and valedictorians, asking about the strategies that helped them become their school’s top performers. Here are the scholars leading Centereach High School’s Class of 2025 in the Middle Country Central School District.
Shawn Edbert: Valedictorian
•GPA: 102.39.
•Activities: Robotics Club, Captain of the Varsity Golf Team, National Honor Society & National Technical Honor Society, French Horn.
•Attending University of Pennsylvania
Ben Taciak: Salutatorian
•GPA: 102.0
•Activities: General Organization President (Student Body President), National Honor Society President, Environmental E-STEM Secretary, Math Team, Science Olympiad, Varsity Golf, Varsity Wrestling
•Attending SUNY Binghamton
What advice would you give an incoming freshman?
Edbert: My biggest advice would probably be to try new things. Get involved around you and figure out what you actually want to do. From there, you can weed out the activities you don’t like and really put all your effort and talents into the things you enjoy. Another tip is don’t do extracurricular activities just to have them. Do them because you actually enjoy what they offer whether it be a sport, club, etc.
Taciak: I would recommend that freshmen get as involved as they can in whatever activities the school offers. They should try things outside of their comfort zone to find their passions, then ceaselessly work to further pursue those passions throughout the rest of their high school career.
How did you stay motivated throughout your studies?
Edbert: I like to plan out the work I need to do each day so I don’t have an entire worksheet or assignment to do at the end of the week. I also prioritized having a good work-life balance. I always find it hard to just grind out school work without giving myself some fun in between. Hanging out with friends, watching a movie or show were both ways I enjoyed some time outside the classroom. Getting sleep at night was also important for me. I would never do work past 9:30 p.m. to ensure I get enough sleep and can continue my days with full energy.
Taciak: I set small goals for myself (ex: study for 15 minutes today) so I wouldn’t be daunted by the larger tasks ahead of me. This helped me stay diligently focused on my larger goals like getting into college while minimizing burnout. I also emphasized the importance of having a work/life balance, making sure I spent time with my friends instead of solely focusing on my studies.
Please share some study habits you employ that helped you maintain high grades.
Edbert: For the majority of my studying, I actually liked listening to noise in the background. I’ve actually put on shows in the background just to get me through all of the work I need to complete. I also like to work with other people. Teaching other peers the work I am learning helps me learn the material significantly more thoroughly.
Taciak: For me, studying has always been difficult. I was never able to focus for long periods of time using all of the famous strategies and thus, I would work inefficiently. I felt like this for years until my brother gave me a valuable piece of advice: “Not every car works best using the same oil; you can’t expect the strategies that work for others to always work for you.” This changed my perspective and taught me to seek out what made me work as best as I could. For me, this is to go to a place like a library, use noise-canceling headphones, and play white noise while taking 5-minute rest intervals every 30 minutes.
What are your goals or career aspirations?
Edbert: I am planning to try and get a dual degree in business and engineering. I want to try and startup my own company in the future focusing on the defense segment.
Taciak: I hope to get a dual degree in Finance and Data Science and then work in the buy side of Private Equity.
