Editor’s note: Park Record intern Amelie Corson, a Park City resident and senior at Rowland Hall is also one of the candidates for the 2023 United States Presidential Scholars Program.

Three Park City High School seniors are among the latest students to be recognized nationally for their academic accomplishments. 

Dominik Jamrich, Case Schemmer and Luca Senn have each been named one of the 5,000 candidates for the 2023 United States Presidential Scholars Program. These candidates were selected from nearly 3.6 million high school seniors who are graduating this year.

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Established in 1964 by executive order of the president, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program aims to recognize and honor some of the country’s highest-achieving high school seniors for their accomplishments in fields such as academics, leadership and community service. 

It would mean a lot just to see like, whoa, look at how far people from our town can still come…” Case Schemmer, Park City High School senior

Each year, a distinguished panel of educators chooses approximately 600 semifinalists, whose names are released in mid-April, and from those, another 161 finalists, whose names are released in May. These finalists embody educational excellence and the promise of greatness in America’s youth. They are awarded with a Presidential Scholars Medallion at the National Recognition Program in June. 

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While Senn wasn’t available for comment, both Jamrich and Schemmer spoke with The Park Record.

Jamrich noted his shock when he found out he was selected. 

“First of all, I was really surprised that I was nominated,” he said. 

Jamrich continued that the consideration meant a lot to him, given that, throughout his life, he has always placed a strong emphasis on school and academics.

“Both my parents are immigrants from Slovakia, and I feel like that’s been a huge part of who I am growing up, and that whole work ethic has really inspired me to commit myself to my schoolwork,” he said. 

Jamrich added that he finds it easier to commit his time to academics given that he’s always had a “genuine interest” in the subjects he learns at school. In the future, he hopes to further these passions by studying business or finance at college. 

While school is a large aspect of Jamrich’s life, he also pursues a variety of extracurricular interests, such as tennis, piano and skiing. He commented that he likes “to try as much as possible and just experience different activities.”

Fellow candidate Schemmer also enjoys exploring his many diverse interests. 

He is currently on both the Park City High School Cross Country and Track teams, and he runs his own coding club. 

Schemmer hopes his coding club will serve as a precursor to his future pursuits, as he plans to study computer science. 

Like Jamrich, Schemmer was equally thrilled about his nomination. 

“At first, I didn’t really know what it was, but then I looked it up, and I was like, whoa, this is kinda crazy. This is a big deal,” he said. 

The youngest of three brothers, Schemmer has lived in Park City all his life. He said getting to meet the president would be especially neat, considering that he comes from a small, rural town.  

“It would mean a lot just to see like, whoa, look at how far people from our town can still come,” he said. “I mean, we’re obviously known for our skiing, and we have a lot of world famous skiers, but I think it would be cool to showcase something about our town that’s different than that.”

Most importantly, both Jamrich and Schemmer are extremely appreciative that they got the chance to apply.

“Just to be a Presidential Scholar would be unreal,” Jamrich said. “I’d have to thank my parents and all the awesome teachers I’ve had. It would be incredible.”

“I was really, really grateful I got the opportunity and really, really shocked,” Schemmer said.

As parting advice, Jamrich wanted to tell younger students to keep working hard because their effort will pay off. 

“People shouldn’t discourage themselves if they’ve been labeled as someone who doesn’t generally do well in school,” he said. “I think everyone has the opportunity to become a Presidential Scholar, and it’s just up to you to decide how much effort you’re willing to commit to it. (People) shouldn’t be discouraged if they’re not a Presidential Scholar, but they should also know that they have it in them to become (one.)”