Schools
Whiz Kid: Carlee Schwartz
The Hinsdale Central senior has big plans for her life after high school.
Name: Carlee Schwartz
Age: 17
Grade: Senior (Class of 2012)
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School:
Accomplishment: Schwartz is a four-year member of the Hinsdale Central girls' golf team, a manager for the girls' basketball team, and a member of the Athletes Committed to Excellence (A.C.E.) Club. She is also a member of the yearbook staff at Central, which she called "one of my favorite classes. It lets me be creative, and it's a really family-oriented class; it's not structured like a normal class."
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Outside of school, Schwartz is also a member of the Loyola Stritch Junior Service League and the Hinsdale Assembly, for which she volunteers in the community.
Key to Awesomeness: When she was in grade school and middle school, Schwartz was dedicated to playing basketball. In 2007, however, she was diagnosed with Marfan syndrome, a condition that affects her heart and forced her to permanently stop playing basketball. Although she was disappointed about having to quit basketball, Schwartz decided to start playing golf the summer before her freshman year of high school, and ended up making the varsity team. She has played on Central's team ever since, and has gone to state with her team twice.
"It was a really interesting experience for me," Schwartz said. "I didn't want to play [golf] at all, but it turned out to be the right choice."
Schwartz also got involved with adaptive physical education (P.E.) at Hinsdale Central as a result of her Marfan syndrome diagnosis. Schwartz was initially put into the class, which is for students who cannot physically participate in traditional P.E., as a freshman. Although she didn't end up taking the class, Schwartz later volunteered with Special Olympics basketball and "fell in love with the kids." As a junior, she participated in adaptive P.E. as an aide, and hopes to continue working with special needs children in the future.
What's Next: Schwartz hopes to become an occupational therapist for kids with special needs after college. She is still looking at schools, but her top four are Auburn University, the University of Kentucky, the University of Alabama, and the University of Iowa. For senior year, though, she is still focused on finishing her high school golf career strong.
"I hope everything with golf goes well. I would love to go downstate my senior year."
