High Ambitions Drive SHS Salutatorian Jonathan La Follette

For the past several years, Jonathan La Follette has stood out as an integral member of the Cyber Knights robotics team and earned favor with classmates as a friendly but dedicated student with a passion for solving problems.

These are characteristics that will lead the Southington High School Class of 2013 salutatorian on to a strong career and lead him to make a difference in the world, Principal Martin Semmel said.

“A lot of people see Jonathan and think of the robotics team, but he is a lot more than that,” Semmel said. “He served as the (Future Business Leaders of America) President and stays actively involved in the community. He is multi-dimensional and full of talent.”

La Follette is at the top of his class, finishing second out of 471 students and building an impressive resume that includes a combination of athletic feats, community service and academic success.

The 18-year-old will move on the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the fall where he will study bioengineering, but the goals are bigger than that. La Follette said he hopes to one day be able to mix his love for robotics and passion for helping people together and produce fully functional prosthetics for those with disabilities.

“It’s an area that is already being developed, but it’s something I’ve had an interest in doing,” La Follette said. “It’s something that could make a difference.”

Born and raised in Southington, La Follette is the son of Min Suk and Keith La Follette. He said growing up, he watched his father work as a radio frequency technician and got into engineering. The active role he held with the high school’s robotics team, Team #195, and Project Lead the Way only served to further his interest.

Justin Mirante, technology and engineering department head at Southington High School, said when he sees someone in La Follette who will be up to the challenge.

“I’m honored he chose me as his most influential teacher, but all I did was provide him with some tools to excel and any challenge I threw his way, he was up to the challenge. His perseverance will ensure future success.”

While at Southington High School, La Follette found a way to stay involved and active in the school community. Besides his role with the robotics team and serving as FBLA president, La Follette was also a member of both the math and technology clubs and earned a third-degree black belt in karate.

He is alo an active Dragon boat competitor and will join a team for the third time this summer.

Looking back at his high school career, La Follette said he has no regrets and would do everything again. He said he’d love to spend more time with friends, but said he was fortunate to spend a tremendous amount of time with those friends anyway because of their involvement in different organizations.

“If I had one piece of advice for the incoming freshman, it would be not to sweat every mistake. I’ve seen a lot of people worry over this and that, but it’s high school,” he said.

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