The award ceremony included a weekend of gala events in D.C. which was a unique opportunity for Gigi. She and her peers attended awards receptions and dinners with distinguished keynote speakers and enjoyed a concluding gala ball at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Of course, meeting the President was pretty exciting, too, as all the Scholars had a private audience with President George W. Bush. 

The Presidential Scholars program also recognizes teachers who have significantly influenced their students. The Presidential Scholars Program Teacher Recognition Award serves as a means of rewarding good teachers for knowledge, skill, and performance. Each Scholar picks the teacher who has had the greatest influence on his or her academic career. Gigi chose her Shipley Middle School Latin teacher, Anne Smith, as the one who inspired her.

Being chosen as a Distinguished Teacher and attending the June awards ceremony was the honor of a lifetime, according to Anne Smith, “It was an exhilarating, and also a humbling weekend, filled with those incredible moments when it hits you how special these awards are both professionally and personally. This honorary award is most probably the finest I will ever receive; it is so meaningful because it comes directly from a former student whose life I touched, and now she goes forward to change the world and make a difference in others’ lives, in a leadership role.”

Gigi plans to continue her distinguished academic career at Princeton University this fall. Anne Smith will continue to motivate and inspire excellence and achievement at Shipley.