When someone thinks of a varsity sports captain, this person is generally not first in the state in Computer Science. That is, unless, you are senior Gabriel Cohen.

Cohen came to these halls three years ago from Lincoln Hall and he made the most of his time here. He took the most rigorous coursework available, got good grades, and did many things outside of the classroom, including Cross Country, Track, Math Team, WYSE, and App Development Club.

“I am most proud of becoming a captain on the Cross country team (Along with my teammates Chris, Ali, and Neo),” Cohen said. “After three years worth of hard work and dedication, it is humbling to be filling the shoes of all of the amazing captains that have come before.”

You would think that, given his schedule, Cohen didn’t do much else other than schoolwork and extracurriculars. But, Cohen spends his free time learning different programming languages and becoming the best coder he can be. And, although he is very humble about it, he won first in Illinois sophomore year on the WYSE Computer Science and placed top five his other years at Niles West.

“I spend a lot of my time reading about technology, programming, and participating in CTF’s [capture the flag cybersecurity contests],” Cohen said.

Senior Nehemiah Wong, who often participates with him on CTFs, respects and appreciates Cohen’s abilities in computer science.

“Gabe is really the key player in our CTF teams. Without him, we’d be like a cherry on top with no ice cream,” Wong said.

But, his talents extend out of the classroom as well. Cohen is a warm-hearted friend and a sarcastic genius. He is his own man, and he won’t let society or anyone’s opinions change who he is. He is someone will always make you laugh, and is, at the same time, unbelievably humble about his accomplishments.

One of his close friends and fellow Senior Cross Country captain, Ali Chaudry, appreciates his friendship with Cohen.

“I met Gabe in Kindergarten, but we started to become friends in middle school. Our friendship was solidified freshman year when we both decided to run Cross Country,” Chaudry said. “I’m happy to have Gabe as a friend because there aren’t many people like him. He’s his own person and he can’t be replaced.”

His ability in technology has caught the eye of faculty in the building as well. Cohen, having taken AP Computer Science A and App Development, has shown his talents off in a classroom setting and undertaken impressive in school projects.

“He picks up new languages and coding ideas very quickly.  He’s made so many successful projects that I couldn’t list them all, but one he made that I really liked is his Shakespeare Role Assigner.  He even has a blog where he posts some of his ideas that he is exploring and implementing,” computer science teacher Matthew Fahrenbacher said. “His performance on Capture the Flag competitions demonstrate that he is one of the strongest young computer scientists in the country.”

Cohen is a model student at Niles West High School. Not only is he successful at academics and at his clubs, but he is unbelievably humble and a great person to be around. So, if you see a 6-foot, fit, friendly giant with a blond afro in the hallways, say hello. He’s someone you want to know.