Kaitlyn Caple, a senior at Ansonia High School, has been selected as a National Honor Society Scholarship semifinalist. Kaitlyn is the first AHS student to win this prestigious award, chosen from more than 11,000 applicants this year. She will receive a $3,200 scholarship toward higher education.
Kaitlyn, known as “Kait” at AHS, has been President of her class all four years, is Vice President of the National Honor Society, and has been a Student Representative to the Ansonia Board of Education for two years. She is a two-sport athlete, having been a cheerleader for four years and member of the tennis team for four years, serving as captain the past two. She has two part-time jobs. Her community service work is extensive and reaches back more than a decade.
So, when does this 18-year-old student sleep? Kait laughs and said she fits it in and tries to be very organized in order to juggle her many responsibilities. Her smile is infectious as she talks about life at Ansonia High School and her next life – attending The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
“Here at Ansonia High School, it is a nice environment. That’s what I was looking for in a college,” she said. Catholic University offers numerous community service activities, and she plans to jump into a few. But what attracted her the most was the university’s staff. “Every teacher at Ansonia High School works to challenge us, because they want the best for us. That’s what I feel I will also get [at Catholic University].”
According to the National Association of Secondary School Principals – which is the parent organization of the National Honor Society – Kait was picked for the scholarship because she exemplifies the four pillars of the National Honor Society: scholarship, service, leadership and character. She said she tried to volunteer for the Holy Rosary Italian Festival when she was six years old, but was told she was too young. “The priest told my mother I would have to wait at least until I was seven. So I did.”
What encouraged her to volunteer so much of her time? She said she is the youngest of three and she “just wanted to be like my two brothers. Everything they did, I wanted to do.” And, she added, she wanted to do more. In addition to volunteering at Holy Rosary Church since she was seven, she has joined numerous school clubs at AHS, including founding the Junior State of America (JSA) Club at AHS as well as serving as the regional Director of Activism. She also is Co-President of the Valley United Way High School Volunteer Council and Youth Leadership group.
It was JSA that led her to serving on the Ansonia Board of Education. Kait said she appeared at a board meeting to ask for permission for the club to go on several field trips. After speaking to the board, she was asked to serve as their first Student Representative. “It has been one of the coolest things I have ever done,” she said. She is now breaking in a new representative, AHS junior Lexi Brinkmann.
“Kait has always been self-motivated and driven,” says Rachel Sopko, English teacher and National Honor Society adviser. “Kait has an innate desire to help others, and this shows in all that she does. Whenever we need a volunteer for something, Kait is always the first to step up. She has been an outstanding member of our community, and I know that she will do great things at The Catholic University of America. It has been a pleasure getting to know her over the years, and I am so proud of all that she has accomplished. She truly proves that thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.”
As for the scholarship she has won, Kait said it was an extensive application, but she is grateful that she did it because she can use the money. Nationally, only 575 students were selected as semifinalists in this NHS Scholarship Program. Kait will be studying electrical engineering in college and hopes to earn a master’s degree in engineering management. She knows her leadership experience at Ansonia High and in the community has shaped her future – and she is forever grateful.
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