Wissahickon senior Matthew Schulman was the winner of the prestigious 2012 William F. Dannehower Award, sponsored by the Triangle Club of Montgomery County. Norristown senior Amanda Assenmacher was the first runner up. The winner of the Dannehower Award receives a $3,000 scholarship while the runner-up receives a $2,000 scholarship. Springfield (Montco) senior Zachary Endter was the second runner-up, and he received a $1,000 scholarship
MATTHEW SCHULMAN – Wissahickon High School
Schulman is ranked first in a senior class of 364 students and boasts a GPA of 5.15. He has won numerous academic awards, including National Merit Finalist, National Merit Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction and Distinguished Honor Roll every marking period.
Schulman is a member and co-president of the National Honor Society and was the recipient of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce Future Community Leader Award. He has received first place awards in the Junior Academy of Science regional competition and has received scholarship offers from Penn State College of Engineering as well as Penn State College of Science.
During his years at Wissahickon, Schulman has lettered in baseball, tennis and cross country and was a key member of the Trojans’ championship tennis team. He also was a member of the Wissahickon Junior Legion baseball team that qualified for the Eastern Regional Baseball Tournament.
Schulman has been involved in numerous community service projects, including the Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard, coordinating efforts with Manna on Main Street, Family Awareness Night and a blood drive at his high school. He is a STARS tutor at his high school and a regular participant at the Wissahickon Valley Watershed’s annual creek cleanup event. He serves as editor-in-chief of the school newspaper, and he is vice president of the senior class. Schulman sings baritone in Wissahickon’s premiere choir, and he also plays saxophone in the high school’s concert band and jazz combo.
Last summer he embarked on a 900-mile walk on the Appalachian Trail, raising $2,800 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
In the fall, Schulman will be attending the University of Pennsylvania.
AMANDA ASHLEY ASSENMACHER – Norristown Area High School
Assenmacher is ranked first in a senior class of 422 students with a cumulative GPA of 4.77. She had perfect SAT scores in both math and writing and a nearly perfect score in verbal. She was awarded the 2011 AP Scholar Award with Distinction. She has been on the academic honor roll for four years. Assenmacher was a National Merit Finalist. 
As a junior, she received the Bausch and Lomb Award, which is presented to the student with the highest scholastic standing in science. She also received the Society of Women Engineer’s Award for exhibiting outstanding achievements in math and science for three consecutive years. Assenmacher has won Pennsylvania State awards for competitions in Hotel and Lodging Management and state-wide mock trial competitions where she has won awards for best advocate and witness.
In sports, Assenmacher has participated in soccer, swimming and field hockey, receiving four varsity letters for soccer and three varsity letters for swimming She received the Norristown Area High School athletic award for each of the sports she participated in. During the 2011-12 season, she received the coaches award for outstanding performance in swimming at the SOL championships.
Assenmacher has served as the anchor, technician and director of the news program at Norristown and was responsible for preparing news broadcasts of school-related announcements to the students, staff and community. She also served as president of the German Club. She was a member of DECA for four years, serving as vice president her senior year and was responsible for organizing fundraising events for local charities and the DECA National charity. She was a volunteer in the Cradles to Crayons charity, assisting with sorting and packaging donations. Assenmacher has served as an alter server at her church since 2001.
In the fall, Assenmacher will attend the U.S. Naval Academy.
2012 William F. Dannehower Award Nominees (SOL Schools)
Abington – Christopher Ruhl
Norristown – Amanda Assenmacher
North Penn – Meghan McGovern
Plymouth Whitemarsh – Kyra Hanlon
Souderton – Sarah Kesack
Upper Dublin – Luke Felix
Upper Merion – Jacqueline VanLoan
Upper Moreland – Tyler Foerst
Wissahickon – Matthew Schulman
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