The Minnesota State High School League ExCEL Award – Excellence in Community, Education and Leadership – is a unique recognition program designed exclusively for Minnesota high school juniors who are active in school activities, who show leadership qualities, and who work voluntarily in their community.
Crookston Public School District is proud to announce our nominations for this award. Leah Johanneck and Ben Capistran have been selected to represent Crookston in the ExCEL Award this year. Leah is the daughter of Daniel and Jodi Johanneck. Ben is the son of Kevin and Lorri Capistran.
Leah Johanneck –
School Activities: Honor Roll, Knowledge Bowl, Orchestra, Leo Club, Envirothon, FFA Chapter President
Athletics: Softball Fine Arts: Orchestra, One Act Play, Three Act Play, Speech
Community Service: Home Delivered Meals, Volunteering for Elementary Book Fairs, Highway Cleanup, FFA Classroom Visits
Ben Capistran –
School Activities: Honor Roll, FFA, Knowledge Bowl, Band
Fine Arts: Concert, Marching and Pep Band
Community Service: FFA Vice President, FFA activities, 4-H activities, church activities
Award recipients will be selected by an independent panel of judges from schools throughout Minnesota. Each recipient will be recognized on KSTC-TV (45TV) during the broadcast of the 2025 winter tournaments. They also will participate in an on-court award ceremony during the Class AA championship game of the Girls Basketball State Tournament in March. Award winners will be announced February, 2026 on the MSHSL website.
