Monte Vista Christian School’s Top Students

Monte Vista Christian School graduated 143 seniors in 2022.

Valedictorian are: Mark Spohn, Samuel Catania, and Sophia Catania.

The salutatorian is Jade Mon.

Here they talk about their future plans, how Covid affected their experience and what they enjoyed most.

•••
Valedictorians

Mark Spohn

I am going to attend Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. I will be majoring in ,echanical engineering.

At Monte Vista Christian, I played three sports: football, soccer, and baseball. I played quarterback for the football team, midfield in soccer, and left field for the baseball team. I was also enrolled in art classes. My art was featured in three art shows, and I painted a mural at the school. I’m excited my mural leaves a lasting mark that can be enjoyed for years to come.

Covid definitely made it harder to learn, but Monte Vista Christian did a great job to make online classes as normal as possible with advanced technology. It was easy for our school to transition as the school had required every student to have an iPad. Covid also affected my sport’s seasons. Luckily, I only missed one full season of soccer and was still able to play shortened seasons my junior year.

At Monte Vista Christian, I enjoyed the environment the most. Monte Vista has provided me with many opportunities to be the best version of myself in academics, athletics, the arts, and spiritually. Everyone at Monte Vista is very kind and encouraging. I have made many close relationships with friends and staff that make everyday enjoyable.

Parents: Joy Spohn and Rick Spohn

Samuel Catania

I will be attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo as a biochemistry major.

I participated in school theatre productions, choir, National Honor Society, and Thespian Honors Society. Outside of school, I do karate at Body Worx Martial Arts

Covid greatly restricted the extracurricular activities I can do. Choir and theatre both require a lot of in-person contact to be done at their full potential. It also forced me to learn in new ways. I found out I’m really bad at retaining information I learn in online lectures, so I had to do more studying on my own and find new methods of learning online.

At Monte Vista Christian, my favorite experience was playing LeFou in Beauty and the Beast. It was fun to perform and it had an incredible cast that was really fun to work with.

Parents: Tracie and Vince Catania

Sophia Catania

I’m attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the fall, and I’m majoring in marine sciences.

At MVC, I participated in band, the California Scholarship Federation, the National Honor Society, and the Thespian Society. Outside of school, I played the flute and piccolo at Youth Music Monterey and trained in karate at Body Worx Martial Arts.

Because of Covid, I was in remote learning for over a quarter of my high school experience. There are positives and negatives to that learning environment, but I definitely missed out on making connections with my classmates and teachers.

My favorite memories at MVC are playing in the pit orchestra for the musicals and my senior year prom.

Parents: Tracie and Vince Catania

•••
Salutatorian

Jade Mon

I will be attending UC Berkeley, intending to double major in biological sciences and computer sciences, or majoring in bioengineering.

I was the president of the National Honor Society, founded and led the English Tutoring Club as president and served as secretary for MVC’s chapter of California Scholarship Federation, creating and leading service opportunities for all to have a positive and meaningful impact on our community.

Covid drastically changed my high school experience, especially with online learning. I felt disconnected from my peers and teachers. Seeing faces on a screen isn’t the same as a conversation in-person.

Talking on Zoom felt awkward and strange. This motivated me to found the English Tutoring Club. Additionally, my experience when interning at NASA taught me other ways to connect with my peers and effectively communicate information to ensure everyone stayed in the loop. Covid taught me a lot about communication, even though I felt so far away from my peers and teachers.

Monte Vista Christian School has a really beautiful campus. Even walking from class to class, a fresh breath of air is so refreshing!

Parents: Joanna Chung and Johnny Mon