Back with Naperville Central High School news one last time, I’ve spent a lot of this year thinking about what people leave behind when high school ends; trophies collect dust and teachers eventually forget your name, but the impact of the work you put in for other people lasts a lifetime.
That’s why senior captain Rohan Jain and the Naperville Central Finance Club’s latest accomplishment is bigger than just a state title.
On April 14, a team of four Naperville Central students led by Rohan Jain won the Illinois Personal Finance Challenge which was sponsored by State Treasurer Michael Frerichs. Despite fierce competition, Central secured first place in the state for the second consecutive year.
“It meant the entire world to me,” Jain says. “Our school, which had never before had an official club supporting this competition, had just won back-to-back state titles.”
However, when Jain reflects on his time in Finance Club, he says the victories are not what matter most.
He continues, “I’m most proud of the community and legacy I’ve built at Naperville Central… I hope that I’m remembered not by the trophies I’ve won, but rather by the community I’ve built and the resources I’ve created.”
That legacy came from years of persistence and support from the people around him. Jain credited economics teacher and club sponsor, Michael Borge, for believing in the team from the beginning, saying, “Without him, none of these achievements would be possible.”
As graduating seniors such as myself prepare for the next chapter of our lives, there’s something fitting about that perspective. Like the old adage teaches us: the most meaningful part of a journey isn’t where it led—it’s the people who traveled with you and the foundation left behind for someone else to continue.
