Indiana’s public school system has over a million students each with different gifts, talents and passions. Over the course of their school careers many of these students will spend countless hours working on a passion of their choice to compete with thousands of others. Being one of the state greats in nearly anything is the result of more work than most anyone is willing to give. But if all of this is true then how has NHS Senior Ethan Feliciano managed to climb the mountain of so many different fields.
Feliciano is state ranked in singles tennis, pole vaulting, and is a state ranked violinist. On top of this Feliciano has proven himself as a talented pianist and, as a freshman, spent time on the varsity track team in the 1600. Feliciano, just 18 years old, has spent well over a decade honing his craft and climbing his way up the ladder through his middle school and high school orchestras. Feliciano has played tennis since he was 12 where he got his humble start on the 6th grade JV tennis team and has since climbed his way up to be the best singles player at Noblesville high school. Feliciano clearly has that special kind of competitive fire that drives him to compete, but it’s been more than just competitive fire that got Feliciano to where he is today. Feliciano has a uniquely intense dedication to his work.
“I feel like when it’s the weekend or after school people want to just relax and watch a movie or play a game or something. I don’t have free time to spend time to spend like that” Feliciano says
That dedication is not something that’s gone unnoticed by people who work with Feliciano. The director of Felicanos advanced orchestra, David Hartman, pointed to his prowess at balancing his extracurriculars as the reason for Felicanos success in all he does
“Ethan will never leave you high and dry. If he’s busy and can’t make a rehearsal or something he’s very good about taking care of it. We understand he’s got a lot on his plate.” Hartman says
Kind words follow every time Feliciano’s character is mentioned. More than just competitive fire compels people to respect Feliciano in this way. NHS senior Nick Sizelove says it’s his mindset that sets him apart from other talented people.
“His humility is what stands out about him more than anything else. As someone that’s good at pretty much everything he has every opportunity to brag or put someone down and I’ve never seen him do it.” Sizelove says
Sizelove also sees the same things in Feliciano that his coaches and teachers do. Feliciano’s dedication is something that is clear to all around him
“I really think Ethan just has a freaky worth ethic. He has a social life outside of his work but whenever he’s by himself he’s working.” Sizelove says
Due to this all in mindset that Feliciano has adopted he is in a unique position to pursue multiple of his passions at a higher level. Yet as graduation ticks closer Feliciano remains uncertain on what his future holds
“I’m still deciding what I should do in college. I don’t know yet. I just want to do it all” Feliciano says
The decision of which passion to pursue fully is one that has followed Feliciano for years. As a freshman Feliciano felt pressure from both tennis coaches and violin teachers to pursue only fully and leave the other behind. When faced with the decision between the two Feliciano picked a third option. Feliciano decided to join the track and field and, of course, was a natural talent.
“I wanted to do track because my coaches wanted me to play tennis year round which was stressful and so i had to make a decision if I wanted to do tennis all year round or focus on violin, so I decided to do track”
While this may seem like an odd decision to some, those close to Feliciano know that more than anything competition is his passion
“Ethan is a competitor. He needs to be the best at what he’s doing. He has that competitive drive” Hartman
