Shane Ardo
School: Mount Hebron High School
Hometown: Ellicott City
Age: 17
Shane is a straight A student who heads the school's National Honor Society. He was captain of this year's varsity soccer team, which lost in the first round of the playoffs. He has played soccer since age 7 and has been a goalie since he was 11.
He's a Maryland Distinguished Scholar finalist. He also belongs to the Math Team and helped tutor students in geometry, calculus and physics, among other subjects.
He earned an engineering medal from George Washington University's engineering and applied science program. He was named to Who's Who Among American High School Students earlier this year. He won the 1994 Ellicott City Optimist Club's Outstanding Senior Award.
Outside school, he has volunteered for such organizations as Christmas in April, Sandtown Habitat for Humanity and the Foreign-Born Information and Referral Network.
Plans: He wants to study math, science or physics.
His comments: "I'm self-motivated," he said. "No one pushes me to perform at this level. I would feel bad if I didn't do well."
Nominations should be sent to Student Standout, The Sun for Howard County, 5570 Sterrett Place, Suite 300, Columbia 21044. Please enclose a brief description of the student's activities and a phone number to reach the student.