When the first drop of rain hit Dan Herrera’s window on Aug. 6, the rising Geneva High School junior’s eyes shot open.  Herrera, a Boy Scout, had been planning a 5K race as his Eagle project for 10 months; he wasn’t about to postpone it due to weather. “After a few minutes of freaking out, I calmed down,” Herrera said. The race wouldn’t start until later that night, so Herrera forced himself back to sleep until 8 a.m. “It was nonstop after that,” he said. More than 200 hours of Herrera’s legwork all came down to this day. By 4:30 p.m., Herrera had marked the course, made a playlist for the …

There's no age requirement to be a whiz kid. Whether you're an artistic third-grader or a brilliant high-school senior, Geneva is full of outstanding students. And this spring, more than 250 whiz kids of all ages banded together to beautify Geneva Community High School, planting a mixture of trees and shrubs—60 of them in 60 minutes.   "The kids dug with their hands in the dirt," said Gwen Gelfuso, who organized the project. "Mr. Rogers said, 'You're not going to leave me with a mess, are you?' I said, 'No, sir!' And we didn't." Gelfuso is the coordinator for High Elements, a districtwide …

Emily Avellana hasn't even taken the required high school Consumer Education class at Geneva High School, but she won first place in the state DECA competition last weekend in the Principles of Hospitality and Tourism Event. Whiz Kid: Emily Avellana Whiz Kid's School: Geneva Community High School Whiz Kid's Accomplishment: Champion in the DECA State Competition Whiz Kid's Key to Awesomeness: The DECA competition for the Principles of Hospitality and Tourism included tests in Economics and Career Cluster as well as two role-play interviews with judges. Under the guidance and training of Eric …

Know a great kid who made Eagle Scout or did your local soccer team take the championship? They may be our next Geneva Patch Whiz Kids honoree. Each week, Geneva Patch will seek suggestions from readers for individual kids, youth groups, teens, and even sports teams that wow us with their accomplishments. We want to hear about these amazing children and teens and select one each week as the Patch Whiz Kid. Submit your nomination in our comment box below or e-mail the information to rickn@patch.com. Be sure to include all of the following information Nominator's Name Nominator's E-Mail Whiz …