Whiz Kid: Jeannine Davis

Right now, she’s an avid Newsome Wolf. But Jeannine Davis has her sights set on a different creature.

The goat is the mascot of the U.S. Naval Academy, which Davis hopes to attend after graduating from Newsome High School next year.

It’s an ambition her father, Peter, has no doubt she’ll be able to accomplish.

“She’s always been a high achiever,” said Peter Davis, who retired from the Special Forces. “She can do anything she wants to do.”

Although she’s only 17, Davis’ resume contains a long list of accomplishments.

A swimmer since age 3, she is now captain of the Newsome swim team and a four-time letterman, is a varsity track team member and has participated in area triathlons for seven years, garnering numerous awards.

In addition to her success as an athlete, Davis is active in community service projects.

She, her mother, Kim, and her 20-year-old sister, Allie, founded the Girls of Grace at , a group of middle school girls that meets monthly for conversation, activities and to accomplish good works in the community. Davis now serves as a mentor for the Girls of Grace, which, among other activities, works with migrant parents and their children at the San Jose Mission in Dover.

“Middle school is a tough time for girls, so we wanted a place where girls can gather and discover who they are,” Davis said.

In addition, she volunteers to cook meals and work with families at the Ronald McDonald House in Tampa, participates in the annual Relay for Life fundraising event for the American Cancer Society at Newsome High School and has been a lifeguard and swim instructor at the Campo Family YMCA for the past two years.

“I love doing community service,” Davis said. “I’m just so grateful for everything I have that I want to give back to the community.”

Currently the Student Government Association president at Newsome High School, Davis has also served as junior vice president and a senator for the SGA. In addition, she’s a member of the Beta and Leo clubs at Newsome and was among five Newsome students who attended the Young Leaders Conference at the University of South Florida.

Despite all of these activities, she hasn’t neglected her studies. She has a 4.47 grade-point average, has received academic letters for the past two years and currently takes Advanced Placement classes in human geography, language and composition and psychology as well as honors classes in mathematics, science, English and history.

Davis is now busy applying to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, hoping for a presidential or congressional appointment.

“I just love the military and would really like to go to the Naval Academy,” Davis said. She said she’s interested in studying political science and is considering a career in politics.

Davis said the people who have most inspired her are her sister and her parents.

“I really look up to my family in general,” she said. “They’re always there supporting me no matter what.”