Whiz Kid: Instant Standout Jennifer Tu

Whiz Kids is a weekly feature in which Patch profiles an outstanding youngster or youth group. This week's Whiz Kid is Jennifer Tu, who is awesome because she's just starting a successful academic career.

Whiz Kid: Jennifer Tu

Age: 13

School: Hoboken High School, 8th Grade

Jennifer Tu is in her first year as a student at Hoboken High. The eighth grader says she is adjusting to the more rigorous course load. Right now she cites math, science and social studies as her favorite subjects, and she likes the atmosphere of her classes.

“The teachers are great here,” she says.

Jennifer is a good student, having already been named Student of the Month in November, just weeks after arriving at Hoboken High. She's particularly interested in a long-term project her social studies class is making of an actual size Monopoly board game with Hoboken landmarks as the properties.

Jennifer is also artistically inclined, being a member of the art club, book club and the school band. She got interested in joining the art club through a friend and enjoys studying how to paint murals.

She plays clarinet in the band, and though she says marching is hard she's getting the hang of it.

“I like marching in the parades the most,” she says.

She also reads a lot, including mythology, mysteries and adventure stories. She's likes entering new worlds through literature.

“You're there and you're interested,” she says. “Some books are hard to put down.”

In her spare time Jennifer likes to play video games, especially the apps on her smart phone. Right now she's playing a strategy intensive game called Kingdoms of War.

Just 13, Jennifer doesn't know yet what she wants to study when she gets older, but she knows she's just started her journey and has plenty of time to find her interest.

Do you know a Whiz Kid, or even a whole group of them? Send any and all nominations to alanskontra@hotmail.com, and check back each week to read about some outstanding youngsters in your community.