Elk Mound High School Class of 2021 Valedictorian: Susan L. Marquardt
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
ELK MOUND — The Elk Mound High School Class of 2021 Valedictorian is Susan L. Marquardt, the daughter of Angela and Scott Marquardt of Elk Mound.
Susan says being named as valedictorian has been a validating experience for her.
“To me, it means that all of my hard work, time and effort has paid off. I am extremely proud of myself for what I have accomplished, and it means the world to me that I have been awarded valedictorian,” she said.
As for memorable events while she was a student at Elk Mound High School, Susan said no single event sticks out as memorable, but rather, it is the atmosphere surrounding events that will stay in her memory.
“I don’t think I have a most memorable event, but just the activities leading up to homecoming or winter carnival or even FFA week always seemed to bring joy to the entire school. They would always bring a sense of competition against the grades and always had really fun spirit dress-up days and activities to do,” she said.
Susan lists Anatomy and Physiology, Advanced Placement Calculus and Physics as her three favorite classes.
In Anatomy and Physiology, “I loved learning about the body and its processes. Also, our teacher, Mrs. Currier-Clark, was an amazing person to be around. This class will help me in the future as well. The environment in AP Calc was amazing and always made me laugh and brought a smile to my face. I loved Physics because it brought my two favorite subjects together: math and science. It was able to challenge me in the best way possible, and the experiments we did were extremely fun,” Susan said.
During her high school career, Susan was involved in National Honor Society, volleyball, golf and student council.
“I loved the sport of volleyball and have for many years. It has taught me many things and has given me some lasting friendships as well,” she said.
Susan says she plans to continue working this summer.
“I have worked at Dunkin’ for over a year now, and I will continue to do so throughout college and summer,” she said.
When fall arrives, Susan will be heading off to UW-Eau Claire where she plans to major in nursing.
“I love the healthcare aspect of nursing and helping others to make sure their health is the best it possibly can be. In the future, I want to become a pediatric nurse practitioner and help the community’s children,” she said.
Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on all aspects of society, and Susan notes the impact has been felt acutely at school as well.
“This year we’ve had to adjust from being taught online at the end of last year, to being in school all five days of the week, but some students are still being taught online,” she said.
“We have not been able to go to sports events, have school dances, be involved in traditional school activities, and simply, we haven’t been able to be taught in the same learning environment,” Susan said.