Come Saturday, Jesus Loza will be graduating with ’s senior class.
But he won't just be walking the stage, he'll have to deliver a speech as valedictorian of the Class of 2012.
The 17-year-old senior has been feeling quite nervous about his upcoming graduation and speech, which he said he worked on over the weekend.
“I’m going to use some inspiring Rocky Balboa quote somewhere [in] there,” he said.
Loza has been attending Newark schools his entire life, beginning with attending half of kindergarten at Milani Elementary School, then moving onto Schilling Elementary School, Newark Junior High School and now Newark Memorial High School.
He will be attending Stanford University starting this fall, with hopes to take on a major in Mechanical Engineering.
“I’ve always been good at math and stuff like that, and I like building things so it sounds good,” he said about his choice in his future studies.
That’s what he hopes to do in life. Loza said he wants to work as a mechanical engineer and see where it takes him from there.
Throughout his four years in high school, Loza remained active in a number of sports, such as football, cross country, wrestling, and track and field. He also remained involved in several school clubs and organizations such as Puente, the California Scholarship Federation and the Interact Club.
Loza was also recognized for his hard work and dedication to his academics at the fourth annual on May 31. He was one of the first students to receive a scholarship from the local nonprofit organization that aims to empower Latino Youth.
“It feels pretty good — I mean, $500 can really help out with tuition being so high,” he said on receiving the scholarship.
In addition, Loza was also one of several students to receive special recognition that evening as well.
The Class of 2012 graduation will be held Saturday at 9 a.m. at the high school's football stadium.
Parents, want to post a photo of and/or send a message to your graduating senior on Patch? Email nika.megino@patch.com.
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