Whether he’s racing toward the finish line or studying before sunrise. Josh Armedilla gives everything he has to reach his goals. Josh Armedilla is a senior at West Leyden High school. Josh is a very hard worker whether it be in his sports, or school work. Josh always strides to be his best.
Josh Armedilla is one the the brightest students in West Leyden. For a small example, Josh has racked up a total of 11 AP classes so far. How does he manage them? In Josh’s words here is how. “In the morning, I wake up around four and study and do homework, and then when I get home after practice, I do the same thing again.” But he also has other extracurricular activities he’s in besides sports. Josh is in the Engineering Club, student console, and marching band. When I asked him what drives him, he said. “In life I don’t wanna have any regrets about my effort and my lack of will to do something that I can achieve. So I try as hard as I can believing that when it comes to opportunity and the perfect moment, there are no second chances.”
That determination doesn’t just stop when the race ends. Josh brings the same amount of focus and drive to every activity he’s in. He has been top 14 for boys cross country for two years. “Whenever I’m interested in something, I just like, hammer it out. UntilI can’t anymore, and I feel like once I lost, my passion for that basketball I started focusing on running. And I’m here today. ” Once Josh found running was his calling, that’s not the only thing Josh has expectations on. He also has a lot on his shoulders because he is a Cross country leader. He also has to manage his under classmen, and be a leader to them. When I asked how it was to be a leader, Josh said with a smirk. “I feel like at the start, Coach Henning and Stark had a lot of expectations with us. But I feel like once we realized, once I realized what expectations he had for us, I felt like it was easier for me to just lead everyone. And it feels like it feels kind of good, because it feels like I’m having a positive impact.”
Josh’s determination in the classroom matches his effort on the course. He continues to push himself with Challenging AP Classes. “I feel like taking AP classes not only gets me prepared for college, but I feel like I’m challenged a lot in these classes, and I don’t think I’d have the same level of interest in school if I didn’t take these AP classes.” While all this is in the now, Josh is looking ahead. He already has a clear plan for his future. “I want to do biochemistry specifically, like, because back in my eighth grade year, my biology teacher had really ingrained in us all these concepts, and I found a lot of interest in them. And then over the years, as I’ve taken AP Bio, AP Chemistry. Because of that my interest has just grown.”
As Josh was talking about his goals for the future, it became clear his motivation runs deeper than race times or grades. It comes from the people that raised him. The people who taught him what hard work means. Josh said kindly “I dedicate all my hard work to my parents, because, especially my dad. Because my dad, for example, he works a lot of hours, and he barely comes home, and I’d say that him working for the whole family, inspires me to work hard as I do, like everything that I can do.”Josh Armedilla’s story isn’t about winning races or being the smartest. It’s about chasing every goal with purpose, and never letting effort go to waste.
