Stissing Mountain valedictorian, salutatorian will pursue sports, community while in college

PINE PLAINS —  Out of a class of approximately 68 students at Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School, Amanda Dillinger of Pine Plains is this year’s valedictorian, and GinaMarie Kirk of Millbrook is the salutatorian.

Dillinger, who listed Spanish as her favorite class of the year, is headed to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the fall, and intends to study environmental engineering: “I grew up on a dairy farm, and when I was little I heard about this energy system where you could convert cow manure, methane, into energy and I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s really cool. I want to do stuff like that.’”

A varsity field hockey and softball player to boot, Dillinger also coaches the elementary school field hockey team, which she listed as one of her favorite activities for how “happy and energetic” the students are.

Kirk, who spoke fondly of her math classes this year, has put her deposit down at SUNY Cortland, where she intends to study exercise science and concentrate in athletic training.

Kirk described her life as “revolving around sports,” playing on both the varsity softball and basketball teams at Stissing Mountain as well as on a volleyball team at the Downstate Junior Volleyball Club, an organization “dedicated to the development and training of junior Olympic athletes.” Kirk is also a coach on Pine Plains’ Unified basketball team, a program in which special needs students play sports in a competitive environment.

Both Dillinger and Kirk indicated that their time at Stissing Mountain has taught them the value of community, a lesson they’ll bring with them to into their college careers. They look forward to branching out and exploring a variety of clubs. As for words of advice to current and future Stissing Mountain students, Dillinger offered the wisdom of a seasoned high school senior:

“This is maybe a little backwards, but focus less on grades and more on your school involvement and your friendships, so that you can actually enjoy your last few years of high school.”

Kirk followed: “I’d agree, it took me probably until this year to calm down a little bit. I was definitely the person that would cry over the 95. But there’s more to life than just the grades you’re getting!”