As students and staff go through the front office, they see a line of plaques along the wall outlining the names of each year’s Top Ten ranked seniors. After years of hard work, senior Gargi Paranjape finds her name among them.
“I’ve been working for like, four years to, you know, achieve something at this school, and, like, make my mark on the school somehow,” Paranjape said. “It felt really cool to know that people can see my, like, work and dedication to school, because my name is gonna be on the wall.”
A long-awaited achievement, Paranjape’s GPA earned her a rank of 5th out of 584 students in her graduating class. She and the rest of the Top Ten were rewarded with a celebratory breakfast, along with recognition at the Honor Graduate Ceremony.
In making the decision of one teacher, out of the many she’s had at Oviedo, to represent her at the ceremony, Paranjape faced no hesitation in choosing William Furiosi: AP Biology, AP Research, Experimental Science and chemistry honors teacher.
“He’s [Furiosi] actually been a very integral part of my path at OHS because I actually came to OHS because of him,” Paranjape said. “I’m zoned for Hagerty, but then I heard about the research program at Oviedo, and I was like, ‘I want him as my teacher.’”
The decision proved worthwhile, as she received several research achievements throughout her four years at Oviedo: advancing to states twice as an underclassman, she won fourth place as a freshman and third as a sophomore. She placed first at the regional science fair in the fall.
Beyond just the scientific recognition she has received for her work in his classes, Paranjape also attributes some of her personal growth to Furiosi.
“[Furiosi] honestly influenced me to go into academia, possibly, and also helped me learn how to actually do research, and also, just in general, how to live life,” Paranjape said. “He’s been a very, very big influence on my high school journey.”
Furiosi expressed praise for Paranjape’s persistence, which has remained throughout high school.
“You saw [Gargi’s tenacity] immediately as a freshman … she literally brought in this extraordinarily heavy jar mixer for beginning her research, and it took up literally the whole back part of the station, and she was there for hours after school, many, many, many days,” Furiosi said. “And to see that as a freshman, that doesn’t go away, that’s just who you are, [it] is your DNA.”
As Paranjape shared the accomplishment with her friends, the people who’d seen her dedication in person, they were not surprised.
“She’s so disciplined … I honestly look up to her on how quickly she is able to absorb information and keep pushing even through hard times,” senior June Frangoul said. “I wasn’t surprised at all [that] she made [the] Top Ten.”
Frangoul met Paranjape this year in their shared AP 2-D Art and Design class, growing close in the short span of their friendship.
“I’m so mad senior year is ending, we haven’t gotten enough time together … she taught me how to meet new people freely, and stand up firm on your beliefs,” Frangoul said.
While Paranjape impacted many students around her, she also felt uplifted by her peers.
“Without my friends, school’s just a box that I’m confined to for eight hours a day,” Paranjape said.
Despite her high rank, Paranjape struggled with something that many high schoolers fall victim to: procrastination.
“I’m a D1 procrastinator,” Paranjape said. “I live by the quote: … If it’s not due today, I’m not doing it today.”
Through the small mental hurdles, she worked toward a future at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she’ll study chemical engineering in the fall and continue her research success.
