This previously ran in our 2022 June Senior Issue.

In addition to his courses, Ethan Strzempek became very involved in the running community at EHS as a member of the cross country, winter track, and track teams. Outside of schoolwork and running, Strzempek joined Astronomy Club and especially enjoys astrophotography. He has a website and Instagram devoted to his pictures of the night sky.

Strzempek plans to attend the University of Arizona to major in astronomy and minor in optical engineering. Although Strzempek does not intend to join the school’s official cross country or track teams, he does plan to continue running in some form, whether on his own or with a club team. 

Stinger: What made you decide to get involved in cross country and track? 

Strzempek: Some of my friends convinced me to run, like Adrian [Fernandez]. But also, I don’t know, just around that time I just got into running. I wanted to join because it’d be something to do and, like, a community to join. 

Stinger: How do you feel you have impacted Emmaus? 

Strzempek: [I think I’ve impacted Emmaus] big time, especially this year in cross country. Beating [Parkland’s best runners], it’s a big accomplishment for me. And being a senior leader to help people like Conor [Fisher] and Oscar [Felegy] and all these amazing runners to do a little bit better so they can go on next year and kick butt. So, I think that was the biggest thing for me, being a team leader and pushing the other guys. 

Stinger: Who was your mentor in high school? 

Strzempek: Probably Mr. McConville because I would go to him to show my progress in astrophotography and all that. He was the one teacher I talked to a lot. 

Stinger: What’s one school rule that needs to be added or changed for future classes?

Strzempek: It would probably be, I think they give a lot of crap to girls who are wearing different clothes, but [with] guys, it’s okay. They don’t really care. That’s one thing that really annoys me because it’s kind of this double standard. I’m not 100% sure about that, maybe I could be wrong, but it seems like that, like they have this double standard against the two. 

Stinger: What will you miss most about your time at Emmaus? 

Strzempek: Friends, classes, all that stuff. Everything really. Friends [and] classes specifically because there were some really cool classes that I had with interesting content [and] good teachers. But the big thing would be my friends. I just know we [will] all go separate ways and it’s going to suck to not see them all the time. 

Stinger: What excites you most about college? 

Strzempek: The environment there, really, because [at] the University of Arizona, there’s lots of state parks [and] national parks that surround the area. It’s out in the west, so I’m going to spend a lot of time outdoors. That’s what I’m excited for. And the clear air [and] dark skies there. It’s basically clear every other night. So, I’m excited for that.