Sartell High School Student Gets Perfect ACT Score

SARTELL -- A Sartell High School student found out studying every day throughout the summer can pay off in a big way.

Janagan Ramanathan earned a 36 on his ACT comprehensive test. Only one percent of students nationwide earn a top ACT score.

Ramanathan says since he had more free time during the summer he decided to dedicate time every day to study for the big exam.

"I was just studying a little bit each day for maybe a half-an-hour or an hour, either online or with a prep book. It was really just from the end of the school year until the test."

Ramanathan is a junior at Sartell High. He says he's still deciding what college he would like to go to but it sounds like the Golden State in on the horizon.

"I'm looking at California. I'm interested in a couple schools there like Caltech and Stanford."

Aerospace engineering and international relations are Ramanathan's top picks for majors. Outside of the classroom, he is highly involved in athletics and school activities.

"A lot of the fall, through the end of October, I spend playing soccer. But throughout the whole school year, I'm involved in student council, that's the one that takes up most of my time. Especially like this week because it's homecoming week we have a lot of activities during and after school that we are trying to set up. Also the third activity I'm involved in is knowledge bowl during the winter."

Of all of his extracurricular activities, Ramanathan says he likes knowledge bowl the most because of his supportive coach and fun team. Last year, the team took 1st place at the state competition.

After studying for months for the ACT, Ramanathan says he felt relieved to find out he not only passed the test but he achieved the highest score possible.

Up next for Ramanathan, he'll be gearing up for the homecoming game against St. Cloud Tech on Friday.