St. Johnsbury Academy Announces Class of 2025 Valedictorian and Salutatorian
St. Johnsbury Academy is proud to announce the valedictorian and salutatorian for the Class of 2025. Ari Leven of St. Johnsbury, Vermont, has been named valedictorian, and Yubo Zhang of Harbin, China, has been named salutatorian.
Described by his guidance counselor Jennifer Anson as “conscientious, bright, and thoughtful,” Ari Leven has made the most of every opportunity during his four years at the Academy.
Ari’s accelerated college preparatory program has included eleven Advanced Placement courses. He is an AP Capstone Diploma candidate, a recipient of the Harvard Book Award, and was honored last year with the Academic Excellence and Character Award.
Beyond academics, Ari is deeply engaged in campus life. He serves as senior class vice-president, is a member of the H.I.L.L.S. leadership group, the Student Diversity Council, and the National Honor Society. He also participates in the Harvard Model Congress and co-founded the Jewish Student Union. A three-season athlete, Ari competes in cross-country, alpine skiing, and track and field. During the summers, he has worked for a local pool company and volunteered as a youth track and field coach. Last summer, he also assisted a nonprofit that researches blood disorders and supports affected families.
Ari was recently awarded the University of Vermont’s prestigious Green and Gold Scholarship, given to the top student in each Vermont high school. He is known for his leadership in fundraising, student government, and organizing events such as Homecoming Weekend.
Ari will attend Northeastern University this fall where he will study economics and business administration.
Salutatorian Yubo Zhang joined St. Johnsbury Academy in his sophomore year and quickly distinguished himself through academic excellence and extracurricular contributions. Yubo has taken ten AP-level courses in a rigorous college preparatory program.
Yubo has received numerous accolades in mathematics, science, and the arts. He has published several works of art and was recognized in the Vermont Scholastic Art Awards. In mathematics, he founded a team for a math modeling competition, qualified for the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME)—the only student at the Academy to do so—and reached the top 10% of junior finalists at MathCon. In science, he was part of the Academy’s state-champion Science Olympiad team, earning first place in two events. As a vital member of the Robotics Team, Yubo helped design and program the team’s robot, sparking his own research project to build a rescue robot using multi-target path planning algorithms. He coded and constructed the robot, conducted extensive experiments, and presented his work at the state science fair.
Yubo is also active in the Art Club and Science Fair and serves as a leader in both the Dorm Council and the National Honor Society.
He will attend Carnegie Mellon University, where he plans to study engineering and design.
Headmaster Dr. Sharon Howell said, “Ari and Yubo represent students who have participated avidly in state and national competitions, engaged in a wide range of the opportunities that the Academy offers, and who have had great success at all levels and in many spheres. We’re looking forward to hearing from them both at Commencement, and to seeing what they do in the future.”
St. Johnsbury Academy’s Commencement Exercises will be held at 10:00 AM on Monday, June 2.
