Three Escalon High School students – all seniors – have received recognition from the Escalon Sunrise Rotary Club as the Students of the Month.

Honored were Alejandro Calderon, Manuel Diaz and Austin Terra.

Calderon received the nomination from teacher and coach Rick Heflin.

“Alex is part of the one two punch of Key Club. He has been the vice president of Key Club for two years and is starting his third year. He has logged many hours in community service for our community,” Heflin explained. “He has provided leadership for quite a few projects over the years. He has held many positions in ASB as well as been a captain on the cross country team for two years. His enthusiasm is infectious.”

Student achievements for Calderon include: CSF, ASB and Key club member; helped to coordinate Prom, senior Class President and Key Club Vice President; involved in soccer, track and cross country.

Calderon said he is “proud of being able to transform my running career” and in fact, went from second to last on the team initially into a top five runner.

Among the awards he has received are: Most Inspirational in soccer, Most Dedicated award for cross country and multiple Scholar Athlete awards.

“I would like to thank Coach Heflin, my siblings, and most importantly my mom,” Calderon added.

Manuel Diaz was also nominated by Heflin, who said the senior has accomplished plenty during his time at EHS.

“Manny has been the president of Key Club the last two years and has started his third year. As an individual he has put in more community service hours than most high school students. As president he has provided thousands of hours for Escalon High students to help the community and prepare for college,” noted Heflin. “He has helped in many positions in ASB and has been a captain for two years on the cross country team. His leadership skills are very high for his age. He will be hard to replace next year for many teams and programs.”

Calderon has been a CSF, ASB and Key Club member at Escalon, as well as participated in track and field, wrestling and cross country.

A leader in cross country and wrestling, he also helped organize the Prom and has served as Key Club President for three years as well as the Junior Class President and Senior Class Vice President. Calderon has received three Academic Block E awards and has excelled in Physics, Spanish and Physical Education.

“I would like to thank my mom and Mr. Heflin,” Calderon said.

Recipient of a Coaches Award for wrestling and track, earned a Most Improved in soccer, he has also been recognized as a Scholar Athlete in multiple seasons.

Nominating honoree Austin Terra was teacher and ag advisor Isabella Leventini.

“Austin is an awesome example of a student leader, being involved in many organizations on campus. As our FFA President, he works very hard to advocate for the FFA program and is always reaching out to other students to get them involved,” said Leventini. “He goes above and beyond every day in and out of the classroom, always being the first to lend a hand to anyone in need. Austin’s positive attitude and excellent work ethic are infectious, and he is always a positive influence to his peers.”

Among Terra’s achievements: FFA President and reporter; shows dairy cattle at the county fair and jackpot sheep and goats year-round up and down the state. He played three years of EHS basketball, but decided to take his senior year off and focus on FFA. He is also part of the DSBA team.

He plans to attend Oklahoma State University after high school and major in Agriculture Education with an emphasis in Animal Science.

Awards have included Ag Pest CDE Team 1st Place; Veg Crop CDE Team 2nd Place; Escalon FFA Outstanding Junior; National FFA Delegate

“I would like to thank my parents, Mrs. Stark, Mr. Saephan and Ms. Leventini and everyone who has supported me,” Terra said.

The student honorees were recognized at a recent breakfast meeting of the Escalon Sunrise Rotary Club.