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Following up with our new “Future Leaders of Muscatine” series, today we wanted to focus the spotlight on a student that has shown drive, passion, and leadership. At a young age, she has already contributed a lot to her beloved community.
Hannah Pautz (she/her/hers) is a senior at Muscatine High School. She is passionate about her school, especially when referring to speech and debate. Whenever she has free time, she enjoys playing her cello and reading books like Lord of the Rings and Narnia. Hannah’s dreams and future aspirations will be taking her out of state after she graduates, where she will be attending Hillsdale College in Michigan.
Born in Thailand, Hannah and her family moved back to the United States when she was one year old. After their missionary work, the Pautz family moved to South Dakota until Hannah turned five, and right after, they landed in Muscatine, Iowa, which she considers her home. Her parents now dedicate their lives to the community; her mom by working as a chemistry teacher at Muscatine High School and her dad as a pastor at Our Savior Lutheran Church, LCMS.
Hannah holds Muscatine High School deeply in her heart; however, she spent most of her childhood homeschooled. Now as a senior, her school experiences might be different from what she expected, but these circumstances haven’t stopped her from learning every day and living her life to the fullest. Hannah fully dedicates herself to her studies and genuinely enjoys participating and engaging in her classes, especially those that allow her to have in-depth conversations.
She is not only fully devoted to her classes but is also an outstandingly involved student. She is involved in orchestra, where she plays the cello, as well as speech and debate, choir, and the swimming team. This year, Hannah got the opportunity of joining the school theatre production of “Spongebob, the Musical” by being part of the instrumental ensemble.
Her strengths and passions shine through everything she does every day. She describes herself as a very motivated and time organized person. However, she believes that there is always something you can improve on. She has been working on allowing herself to incorporate more spontaneous moments in her life, as she believes that her type-A personality can hold her back from trying new things. She shares, "you don’t have to know what is going to happen before you go into it.”
Like many people her age, her views on her future change daily. Originally interested in becoming a neuroscientist, Hannah shares that she is drawn to psychology, public speaking, journalism, and even real estate. However, she knows that her future is bright and is ready to take on whatever is next.
With her passion and enthusiasm, Hannah shares with us an achievement she is proud of.
“I started and founded a middle school speech and debate team,” Hannah said. “The team meets twice a week, fully virtually, to help middle schoolers with their public speaking skills.”
While she is almost done with her high school experience, Hannah will forever carry those memories with her.
“I will always remember the clubs, the knowledge but I will definitely always remember my friend group,” Hannah said.
While looking back at her school years, she advises students to get as involved as they can because the years go by fast. She also emphasizes to not become overstressed if they did not get an A+ in all of their classes and prioritize what is best for them.
Hannah’s story is unique and her actions have already had a positive impact on Muscatine. Her remarkable personality and ambition will take her to big places. We wish her the best in her next endeavors and can’t wait to see what her future achievements will be!
