Meet CTE's Co-Valedictorians and Salutatorian

Congratulations to the Orange-Ulster BOCES Career & Technical Education Center's top academic honorees!

These exceptional students were recognized on May 27 at the OUB Outstanding Student Honoree Awards event at Villa Venezia in Middletown, alongside outstanding students from high schools across the region:

 Liam Kearns | Co-Valedictorian

Liam Kearns is a highly focused and creative scholar who has spent his high school career specializing in computer programming and video game development. His academic dedication has earned him a spot on the High Honor Roll and led to his induction into the National Technical Honor Society. An innovative programmer, Liam has already built an impressive portfolio of projects. His creations include Labyrinth, a game coded in visual basic, a Python-based historical game where the player acts as a French Resistance member in WWII, and a clever choose-your-own-adventure game developed using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript centered around a quest to ShopRite to purchase ingredients. Outside the classroom, Liam enjoys playing video games, drawing, listening to music, and reading.

Looking ahead, Liam has mapped out an ambitious career path in information technology. He aims to first earn his CompTIA Security+ Certification to become an IT security specialist before advancing to a CompTIA CySA+ Certification to achieve his goal of working as a cybersecurity analyst. 

Yaniel Rodriguez Vera | Co-Valedictorian

Yaniel Rodriguez Vera is a talented and driven programmer who has truly excelled in his computer programming studies throughout high school.  His hard work and dedication in the classroom have earned him a well-deserved spot on the High Honor Roll. An inventive developer, Yaniel has already built a variety of impressive coding projects across several programming languages.

Yaniel's creations include The Extreme Obstacle Course, a platform game developed in visual basic, The Dungeon Explorer, an engaging story-driven game built using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, and a strategy-based Gomoku game coded in C++.  Following high school, Yaniel will head to SUNY Oswego where he plans to turn his passion into a career by earning a bachelor of science degree in software engineering. 

Isaac Frederick Schneider | Salutatorian

Isaac Frederick Schneider is a truly talented student whose passion for technology has allowed him to stand out at two different schools, earning him a unique second recognition at today’s ceremony.  Specializing in computer programming and video game development, his hard work has consistently earned him a spot on the High Honor Roll.  An inventive programmer, Isaac has already developed three exceptional coding projects.  His impressive portfolio features a classic Space Invaders video game developed in visual basic, a fun whac-a-mole game built using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, and a creative Python project that successfully programmed a robot to play the iconic Super Mario Bros. theme song. Even outside of school, Isaac loves spending his free time coding and sharpening his tech skills.

Following high school, Isaac will attend Mount Saint Mary College where he plans to turn his talents into a career by earning a bachelor of science degree in game development.