PROFILE

John F. Kennedy High School senior Jesse Tellez is ranked in the top ten percent of his class, has been on the school’s Honor Roll throughout high school and is enrolled in not only several AP courses, but is also taking a college-level English class. With a current 4.2 GPA, Tellez is a member of the varsity tennis team, fitness club and MESA and is joining the National Honor Society (NHS). He is planning to apply to University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado School of Mines and the University of San Diego.

FAVORITE BOOK

“Into the Wild,” by Jon Krakauer

FAVORITE MOVIE

“Inception”

FUTURE CAREER

Astrophysics or Astronomy

HERO

“My mom’s best friend, Dean.”

WORDS TO LIVE BY

“If you don’t have to try to get a lesson out of something, then the lesson is not worth a personal value.”

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Tellez volunteered at Adventures in Learning, a day care center where he organized books and helped students on their assignments. At Denver Public Library he shelved books and purged old ones. “I feel that [community involvement] helps you develop character and by involving yourself in the community, you get to acquire the traits and develop a stronger bond with the people you volunteer with,” he said.

IF I COULD IMPROVE THE WORLD . . .

“I would like to teach the world that self-discipline and [advocacy] in education is one of the most important traits to live by. You won’t gain anything if you don’t have a personal dedication, ambition in it.”