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Plainfield East High School senior Aleena Yousuf earned a perfect composite score of 36 on the ACT college entrance exam on her first attempt. Achieving this score places her among fewer than one percent of students nationwide who reach the top mark.
“We are extremely proud of Aleena’s incredible accomplishment,” said Heather Boswell, PEHS assistant principal of student services. “It is truly extraordinary, and we know it reflects her dedication, preparation and hard work.”
Boswell described Yousuf as a standout student and leader.
“She is a wonderful representation of what Plainfield East is all about, and her contributions make our school community stronger,” Boswell said.
Yousuf expressed surprise at her results.
“I was thrilled and a little shocked,” Yousuf said.
She also scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT with a score of 1570 out of 1600. Yousuf attributed part of her success to co-founding the school’s test prep program, where she helps classmates with ACT resources and tutoring. She noted that she did not spend much additional time preparing for the ACT because she had already studied extensively for the SAT.
In addition to academics, Yousuf participates in Science Olympiad and Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) at Plainfield East. She plans to study electrical engineering in college.
Plainfield East High School serves grades 9 through 12 in Plainfield and Will County, with an enrollment of 2,162 students during the 2019-2020 school year according to the Illinois Report Card: https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/. The student body includes 42.3 percent white students, 15.7 percent black students, 25.9 percent Hispanic students, and 10.7 percent Asian students as reported by the Illinois Report Card: https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/.
About a quarter of these students were seniors during that year: https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/.
