Student of the Month: Chiara Dusanek is motivated by faith

WYOMING, Iowa (KCRG) - The KCRG-TV9 Student of the Month is Chiara Dusanek. She’s at FFA Nationals this week, competing with her team that’s ranked among the top 16 in the nation. She’s also competing in Talent, after winning the state competition for her singing and ukulele skills.

“Music is just my passion, I’ve grown up with music, my mom led at church, I lead music at the youth group I go to, music is such a huge part of my life,” Dusanek said.

She’s a senior at Midland Community School District, the same school she’s been to her whole life, and also where her mother, grandmother, and great-grandparents went. She’s in a wide variety of activities, from musicals to FFA. Midland Secondary School Principal Nathan Kleinmeyer says she is a leader.

“What a great representative for our school, from our FFA, and our tremendous ag program here at Midland, to band and choir, and just a general leader at the school academically and otherwise,” Kleinmeyer said.

Through all the practices, performances, and participating in all kinds of extracurricular activities, besides her family, friends, and teachers...it’s her faith that motivates her.

“The one thing, the one person that keeps me grounded, is Jesus,” Dusanek said.

Dusanek plans to go to the University of Iowa, to become an anesthesiologist, with plans to work at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital, with a minor in theater for fun. Her personal experiences helped to shape that decision.

“I’m very clumsy, I’ve broken my pinky finger, I’ve broken my arm, I had appendicitis, and have had to have surgeries for those,” Dusanek said. “Every time I had to do those, the anesthesiologist was the nicest, coolest, person in the room.”

She was the FFA State Champion last year and this year in ag biotechnology, as well as the FFA State Champion for talent.

“Music is something I’m going to do my whole life, whether that’s singing at weddings, or gigs or whatever, forever,” Dusanek said.

You can nominate outstanding students in eastern Iowa to be our Student of the Month. Nominations are open for any student, K-12, in the TV9 viewing area.

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