Minooka Senior to Go to Top Architecture School in the Nation

Andrew Moorman, 17, Senior at Minooka Community High School

Andrew Moorman loves art. And, even though he has had only one art class during his high school career, he still is attending the number one-rated university in architecture this fall. For years, he has maintained his art skills outside the school environment.

Since sixth grade, Moorman knew that he would be an architect. He started researching colleges and came across the top in the nation for architecture. 

Moorman said he is taking the advice of his English teacher Nancy Lehman to not limit himself to just one thing and to express his creativity to the fullest. 

It’s a good thing he did, because recently, he was one of two recipients who were awarded a $500 scholarship from the Three Rivers Art Council. Alexandra Klepec of MCHS was the other scholarship winner.

Moorman submitted a mixture of sketches in charcoal; painting, graphic art work and examples of sculpting.

With the help of the scholarship, Moorman will be entering the five-year architecture program at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. this fall. While the program is very demanding, Moorman is up for the challenge. If he has time in his busy schedule, he plans to contribute to community service projects on campus.

Recently, Moorman has contributed to his community through the Minooka United Methodist Church and Youth Group. He has helped in the kitchen and served food during spring brunches and Lenten fish fries, as well as worked the plant sales and yard reconstruction projects. 

As a four year participant in Appalachian Service Project organization, Moorman volunteered for a weeklong trip to repair homes for low-income families in rural Appalachian Kentucky.

While he attended MCHS, Moorman was a four-year MCHS Math Team member, who was recently given the Best Overall Mathematics Student Award. He also was a junior member and senior vice president for both the National Honors Society and the National Honors Spanish Society. 

As a member of the MCHS Student Council for three years, Moorman was active in organizing major school events, including Prom. He helped the school’s improvement and cultural tolerance programs as a member of S.T.A.N.D., the MCHS division of the National Rachel’s Challenge Organization.

Over the summer, Moorman plans to do a great deal of reading and practice his art work. When he is with his friends, they may choose to go see the latest movie or hang out and play some video games. 

The Moorman family has lived in the Channahon-Minooka area for several years. In fact, the Moorman Family Tree extends to some well-known people in Channahon. 

Moorman is related to Missy Schumaker, the village clerk. Which makes Moorman also part of the lineage to the most prominent family in Channahon; the Rittoff’s.

After college, Moorman hopes to live in a large metropolitan area and work for and architecture firm. He prefers Chicago or somewhere in New York. He would also like to travel to Dubai, United Arab Emirates because it’s the “architecture capital of the world.”

“I want to design for impoverished urban districts inexpensive housing that demonstrates both style and functionality and to create smart structural murals among the lackluster monotony of traditional urban design that occupants would be pleased to both observe and rent,” Moorman said.

Moorman just graduated from MCHS.