By Alexa Gonzalez
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Molly Dudas’s list of accomplishments at IHA seems never ending.

From running Cross Country and acting as Co-President of the International Thespian Society (ITS) to now becoming Salutatorian of her senior class, Molly has excelled in the many challenges she has taken on.

Molly’s activities at IHA have been diverse. Since freshman year, she has been part of the IHA Cross Country team, which has given her many great friends and solidified her love for running. “Doing cross country for four years makes you realize that you want to run for the rest of your life,” she states.

In addition to running, Molly has been very active in theater, participating in the musicals at IHA and Don Bosco, as well as the St. Joe’s Drama. This year, she became Co-President of ITS and lead the ITS One Acts Drama, a job that she is going to miss very much. She says, “with the ITS One Acts, I got to put on a production, direct, figure out costumes, pick out scripts that I like, act in it, write for it. When else am I going to be able to do that?”

Her Cross Country seasons have always overlapped with her involvement in the IHA musicals in the fall, the time of year which she calls “the worst, the favorite, the busiest, the funnest, and the most rewarding.” Though juggling sports and theater has been very demanding, Molly admits that she is lucky to have gotten the best of both worlds, especially because of the people she has met. “I like that I got 2 very different kinds of people in my life,” Molly says. “Both kept me sane.”

Molly’s jam-packed list of activities continues: she is a group leader for the club KAM, a group leader for the Care Group SHARE House, and a Prefect. She is also on the NAHS Executive Board, a member of Math League, a WIHA Anchor, and a member of the National Honor Society.

Molly shares that the secret to managing all of these different kinds of activities is passion. “You have to want to do it all,” she says, and despite the stress, she admits that she has loved every minute of being able to pursue her many passions at IHA.

Not only has Molly shined in her strong extracurriculars, but she has also succeeded in her academics. For four years, Molly has taken only Honors and AP courses and has received Distinguished Honors almost every quarter.

Her favorite classes have been AP Calculus and AP English in her junior year. “I love a teacher who uses the subject matter to apply it to life,” Molly says, and she names Mr. Millard and Mrs. DeSanta as her two favorite teachers who have done exactly that. Molly attributes much of her academic success to her supportive teachers. “I mostly had teachers who were willing to help me,” she shares. “They want you to succeed and a lot of people don’t realize that.”

Molly shares that “not just freaking out about the grades but actually caring about the subject matter” has been her key to excelling in her academics. Her strong work ethic and willingness to learn have paid off: she is now the Salutatorian of her graduating class.

Looking back on her experience at IHA, Molly has no regrets. “I have been able to do everything that I wanted to do,” she says, and she thanks IHA for giving her many opportunities to do so.

Next year, Molly will be attending Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering where she will be majoring in Manufacturing and Design. She intends to “combine the public world and the engineering world” and plans to double major with a liberal arts major.

Molly has certainly made the most of her four years at IHA. We congratulate her on her great success and are confident that her future will be just as bright!