Meet Jonathan Akman

history buff, journalist, sports fanatic

A three-sport athlete and allconference basketball player, Jonathan loves competition. But it was McLean’s spirit of teamwork that attracted him.

“McLean’s a strong community that promotes learning,” he said.”Everyone’s encouraging and willing to help each other.”

Having started a newsletter as a McLean freshman, Jonathan began covering sports for Emory University’s newspaper within days of arriving on campus. Supervisors said he was an unusually well-prepared rookie.

“McLean’s teachers really knew how to engage me,” he recalls. “A favorite was my advisor, who taught AP U.S. history. We did an NCAA tournament-style bracket to determine the best president ever.”

Jonathan, who scored a 5 on his AP history exam, hopes one day to score his dream job as an ESPN executive producer. Meanwhile, he knows his move to McLean was a winner.