Ever since freshman Madelaine Foler was a little girl, she has been impressing almost every person she meets. Whether it was because of her beautiful voice, her gracious personality, or her impressive mind, Foler certainly does stand out from the rest of the crowd.

One of Foler’s most impressive accomplishments is her placement in a higher level math class. She has been coming to Niles West to take math classes ever since she was in seventh grade. Being two years ahead in math than an average freshmen, Foler is currently in Honors Pre-Calculus.

“The transition to high school was much easier for me than I expected, partially because this is my third year as a student,” Foler said. “I took Honors Geometry in seventh grade and Honors Algebra 2 in eighth, and those years were extremely helpful in getting to know the building and the academic expectations.”

One key aspect to Foler’s success in math is her determination to solve each problem, as her Algebra 2 teacher Ryan Geu noticed.

“One way she stood out was that she took this challenging course as an eighth grader and did really well. Another way she stood out was that on difficult problems that many students would give up on, Maddy was a competitor and would battle through until she successfully solved the problem,” Geu said.

Foler’s excellence in math is not the only skill she possesses. She also has an outstanding voice. She is one of the youngest students to be enrolled in the Concert Choir class.

“The best part of my year is probably choir. I auditioned for Mrs. Branahl last fall and she placed me into Concert Choir, with most of the students being older than me,” Foler said. “I really enjoy the challenge, and I’ve met some of the kindest and most fun people in that class.”

Perhaps the most delightful thing about Foler is her ambitious and kind personality. Her good friend, Deborah Bodansky, speaks of Foler with high regard.

“Maddy and I became friends in choir when she was in sixth grade through a shared interest in musicals and literature. She’s very kind and genuine and easy to have an intelligent conversation with. She’s also a great listener, and spending time with her is always fun because we never run out of things to talk about,” Bodansky said.