Three Orange County high school graduates have earned national recognition for their academic achievements, leadership and service as members of the 2026 class of U.S. Presidential Scholars.
The U.S. Department of Education announced the selection of 161 students nationwide on Oct. 27, recognizing graduating seniors for exceptional achievements in academics, the arts, career and technical education, leadership and community service.
Orange County’s 2026 honorees are Sophie Mirae Kim of Huntington Beach High School in the Huntington Beach Union High School District; Irene Pan of Valencia High School in the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District; and Suraj Samir Shah of Arnold O. Beckman High School in the Tustin Unified School District.
Since graduating, the three have taken different paths as they continue pursuing their interests.
Kim earned admission to Stanford University while still a junior in high school and is spending this year working full time in artificial intelligence safety. She plans to study symbolic systems at Stanford. Kim was also named a 2026 Gloria Barron Prize winner in recognition of her community service and leadership.
Pan is her first year at Harvard University, where she plans to study computer science. While attending Valencia High School, she served as president of U.S. Rep. Derek Tran’s Congressional Youth Advisory Board and was selected as a California delegate to the National Youth Science Camp.
Shah is also a first-year student at Harvard University, where he plans to concentrate in government and economics. At Beckman High School, he served as senior class president, captained the debate and mock trial teams, and founded Debate Discovery Kids, a nonprofit that helps expand access to speech and debate opportunities for young people.
A highly selective honor
The three were selected from a national pool of more than 6,700 candidates, representing approximately 3.9 million graduating high school seniors nationwide.
Established in 1964 by executive order of President Lyndon B. Johnson, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program has recognized approximately 8,800 students nationwide. The program expanded in 1979 to honor students with exceptional talent in the arts and again in 2015 to recognize accomplishments in career and technical education. Candidates are identified through standardized test scores or nominations by state education officials and partner organizations.
Participation is by invitation only, and students cannot apply independently or be nominated directly by their schools.
A review committee evaluates candidates based on academic performance, essays, personal characteristics, leadership and community service. Approximately 650 semifinalists advance for consideration by the Commission on Presidential Scholars, which selects up to 161 honorees nationwide.
The 2026 scholars will receive Presidential Scholars medallions and congratulatory letters recognizing their achievements, with medallions expected to be mailed in early December.
For more information about the program and the complete list of honorees, visit the U.S. Department of Education’s Presidential Scholars webpage.
Here are the other stories we’ve been following this week:
- OCDE recognized four schools as 2026-27 Orange County Impact Schools, celebrating their approaches to family engagement, student leadership, literacy and multilingual learning during campus visits with County Superintendent Dr. Stefan Bean.
- OCDE will host its third annual Student AI Convening on Nov. 6, bringing together Orange Count middle and high school students to lead workshops, showcase AI-powered projects and explore responsible uses of artificial intelligence.
- Fifth-grade students at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano are gaining hands-on experience in regenerative agriculture at La Novia Farm, a two-acre project developed in partnership with The Ecology Center and the city to promote environmental education and stewardships.
- Formal special education complaints rose 7 percent nationwide between the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, with California, Texas and Massachusetts accounting for a quarter of written state complaints as families and educators increasingly turn to dispute resolution processes.
- Some schools across the U.S. are banning caffeine pouches amid concerns that the discreet products, which can contain as much caffeine as two cups of coffee, pose health risks to students and closely resemble nicotine pouches.
- More than 60 Safran Cabin volunteers gave Simmons Elementary School in Garden Grove a colorful makeover, adding ocean-themed murals, refreshed playgrounds, new seating and pickleball courts to create more inviting spaces for students to play and connect.
- California voters approved Proposition 3, making permanent an income tax on high earners that generates billions of dollars annually for public schools and community colleges, preserving a major funding source previously set to expire in 2031.
- Students at Sunkist Elementary School in Anaheim are turning their reflections on gratitude into artwork for a collaborative mural that will be unveiled Nov. 13 at the ARTIC Train Station as part of an OCVibe-supported public art exhibition.
- San Diego Unified School Board President Richard Barrera declared victory in California’s superintendent of public instruction race after building a substantial lead over Sonja Shaw, though votes were still being counted, with the winner set to take office in January under a newly restructured state education system.
This is the part where we encourage you to keep up with local education news stories by bookmarking the OCDE Newsroom, subscribing for emailed updates and following us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.