John is a rising senior at St. Pauls High School in St. Pauls, North Carolina, where he maintains high grades and participates as captain of the Quiz Bowl team and President of the National Honor Society. John is an accomplished musical actor, most recently haveing played the role of Sky Masterson in the musical Guys and Dolls. Other theatrical credits include Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors and Valentine White in Babes in Arms. John works at Bladen Union Baptist Church, where he serves as minister of music and pianist--a position he has held for almost two years. John has recieved consistent excellent and superior ratings from the National Guild of Pianists, the North Carolina Music Teachers Association, and the National Association of Teachers of Singing for his vocal and keyboard skills. In addition to his love of music, John has a wide range of interests, including the sciences, history, and--of course--computers.

John is the recent recipient of the Xerox Award for Humanities, the Chamber of Commerce "Student of Excellence" Award, the Woodsmen of the World Award for Profeciency in American History, and highest average awards for Advanced Placement US History, Chemistry Honors, and English III Honors. Also, John served as chief marshal in his high school's commencement exercises this past June. John attended the Choral Music program of the Governor's School of North Carolina--West during the summer of 1996.