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SALT LAKE CITY — For Samuel Adams, language opens doors.
Independently studying German took him to the small German town of Waldefeucht, where he spent three weeks learning from a local family.
Teaching himself American Sign Language helped Adams to be an interpreter for one of his classmates, who became his friend as well as his date at their school's winter formal.
On Tuesday, Adams' love of languages led him to a podium alongside some of the brightest high school students in Utah, where he was named the winner in the World Language category as well as the General Sterling Scholar winner in the 2015 Deseret News/KSL Sterling Scholar Awards Program.
"I really think it's awesome to be able to break down these barriers and become more united," he said, "… to break down not only a language barrier but a cultural and an understanding barrier."
Adams, a senior at Skyline High School, breathed deeply and grinned widely as his name was read. From the first day he applied through Tuesday's finale, Adams said he most enjoyed celebrating the educational accomplishments of all the students he met along the way.
"They're all so outstanding. It's great to have a group that is so excited for a common purpose that is really, I think, noble. Education is such a great thing," he said.
Adams also speaks the language of technology and is a co-captain of the Skyline High robotics team and the founder and CEO of his own app company, Samuel Adams Apps. He aspires to study biomedical engineering in college, a field in which he hopes his acumen for language will allow him to serve all kinds of patients and work alongside leading researchers from many countries.
The long list of languages Adams hopes to someday learn includes Turkish, Japanese and Chinese.
"I want something for everywhere, I guess," he said with a laugh.
Having been accepted to both the University of Utah and BYU, Adams must now decide whether the next door he walks through is marked with a U. or a Y.
The Sterling Scholar program has recognized outstanding academic, leadership and service by Utah high school students for 54 years.
The program began in its early stages in 1962 when the need to honor educational pursuits was first realized. Deseret News staff members noticed the paper’s comprehensive coverage of student athletes and sought to extend similar recognition to scholars as well.
Before presenting the Philo T. Farnsworth/Governor's Award, Tami Pyfer, education adviser to Gov. Gary Herbert, marveled at the caliber of students honored Tuesday night, describing them as Superman, Mother Teresa and Einstein all rolled into one.
The Farnsworth award and accompanying scholarship was presented to Robert Nay of Maple Mountain High School, first in his class and holding a perfect ACT score.
Nay, a finalist in the computer technology category, helped develop a program, "Bubble Ball: Curiosity Edition," for Thanksgiving Point's Museum of Natural Curiosity, as well as an iPad app to help children learn to read.
In addition to academic excellence, the Sterling Scholar finalists across 14 categories were also recognized Tuesday for their commitment to serving the communities around them.
Stephanie Jencks of Bingham High School, a finalist in the Skilled and Technical Sciences Education category, was awarded the Douglas F. Bates Community Service Award, honored for her diverse efforts to better the lives of others.
Jencks, who will receive her cosmetology degree before she begins college this fall, uses her cosmetology training to comfort women in a battered women's shelter, reinforcing their self-esteem in a time of crisis, and has dedicated time to provide on-site as well as digital tours of Bingham City's historic ghost town cemetery.
"Learning and giving is a lifelong career," Jencks said in her profile. "I like to look for opportunities to serve. It is who I am."
Watch the entire presentation of the 2015 Sterling Scholar Awards here.
