By Joel Langton
The 830 Times
Amanda Ong might qualify for the title of “Wonder Woman,” but she’ll settle for her newest distinction: U.S. Presidential Scholar in Career and Technical Education.
Her résumé is stacked with achievements. In mariachi, she finished fourth in the state. In swimming, she placed in the top 10 at regionals. In robotics, her team qualified multiple times for the world championship, and she was named a Dean’s List semifinalist — the equivalent of all-state, her coach said. At Del Rio High School, she graduated as the Class of 2025 salutatorian.
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon announced the 2025 class of U.S. Presidential Scholars on Sept. 26. This marks the 61st year of the program, which honors 161 high school seniors nationwide for excellence in academics, the arts, career and technical education, community service and leadership. Ong is one of just 20 students in the nation to earn the CTE distinction.
That recognition also puts the Gerardo J. Maldonado CTE Center in rare company. Nevada’s West Career and Technical Academy in Las Vegas has produced three CTE Presidential Scholars, and Newark Charter School in Delaware has had two. With Ong in 2025 and Christian Tamez in 2021, Maldonado CTE Center is among the very few schools in the country to produce multiple winners. Only about 220 CTE students nationwide have received the honor since the program expanded in 2015, and two of them studied in Del Rio.
When reached on FaceTime, Ong was walking across the University of Texas at Austin campus, where she is now a
freshman majoring in mechanical engineering with a minor in robotics. She even spends some spare time helping with a solar-powered F-1 car project.
Ong said she focuses more on the journey than the destination, which shaped her reaction when she saw the email from the Secretary of Education notifying her of the honor.
“I was really super proud and happy, but at first I was just surprised because I thought they discontinued it,” she said. “For me, it’s more about the work that goes into something. That’s where I take the most joy. When I get the actual result, I don’t really know what to do.”
As part of the application process, Ong wrote about her most influential teacher, robotics coach and math instructor Lauren Cardenas.
“She was always there — before I arrived, after I left,” Ong said.
“She’s been my Advanced Placement calculus, pre-calculus and AP statistics teacher and was working on her second master’s degree. She really deserves this recognition, too.”
Cardenas said Ong’s success was fueled by positivity and persistence.
“Amanda is a very positive, outgoing student who was a joy to have in class,” Cardenas said. “She wasn’t afraid of tackling difficult material and worked well with others. She could explain tough concepts in terms her peers could understand.”
Cardenas also recalled a robotics meet where Ong’s passions came together. When the national anthem singer failed to show, Team 4063’s “Queen Bunny” stepped forward and delivered a memorable performance. “She volunteered and did an absolutely beautiful job,” Cardenas said.
Ong’s gratitude stretched beyond robotics. After her interview, she sent follow-up messages to ensure every teacher who influenced her was acknowledged.
“I’m so grateful for what everyone did for me,” she said. “As much as I learned from my teachers, I also learned from my fellow students who taught me so much. I’d never accomplish anything without them helping me get better every day.”
Despite her accolades, Ong keeps the spotlight on those around her.
“I’m really grateful,” she said. “But the moments I’m proudest of are all the hours in robotics or rehearsals — all the people around me who taught me and worked alongside me. This award belongs to them, too.”
She added that her greatest inspiration comes from home. “To me, the real heroes are my parents — they are my Presidential Scholars,” she said. “My parents worked so hard to make something of themselves and for their families, and anything I accomplish is thanks to them.”
Her parents are Dennis and Feliz Saldua Ong.
Presidential Scholars background
By executive order, the 2025 U.S. Presidential Scholars include one young man and one young woman from each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and U.S. families living abroad, along with 15 chosen at large, 20 Scholars in the arts and 20 Scholars in career and technical education.
Created in 1964, the program has honored about 8,600 of the nation’s top-performing students. It was expanded in 1979 to recognize students excelling in the arts, and again in 2015 to honor accomplishment in career and technical education.
