Upon first glance, Max Mazzotti looks like an average high school teenager who attends Lemont High School. He has been to countless football games and has been to every single dance since his freshman year. But once you get to know him, Max is actually fighting his own battle – a disorder that impairs to communicate and interact. Max is diagnosed with low level of autism that has challenged him over the years in learning and studying. He easily gets carried away but he assured that he always learned to fight back.

Max is a high honor roll student who enjoys science classes, art, history, and is currently taking Math classes for the College Of DuPage, his college of choice this upcoming August. One of his favorite classes is Big History – a course which presents one large story that helps explain how the world got to be the way it is and where we fit in. But his number one favorite class is Art because he gets to paint and draw artworks such as DJ sets, dinosaurs, cars, and fictional characters.

During his sophomore year, his Driver’s Education teacher notes that Max did very well in class, consistently completing his work on time. He was also more than willing to assist other students or help in the classroom. Max is described as a conscientious student who pays close attention to detail and strives for excellence in all of his classes. All these positive aspects laned him an award as the Student of the Month for January of 2016.

Max is a member of Film Club, Science Club, and an active member of the National Honor Society. He also swam all for years of high school for the LHS swim team. Max showed perseverance, strength, and the will to never give up despite having three coach changes in his four years in high school.

“Although I had my fair share of accidents, my teammates were there for me,” Max expressed as he reflected back on his swimming career.

Outside of school, Max goes bike riding and loves the Star War series. He is an avid fan of motorsports such as Formula One and NASCAR in which he considers as a “very good form of entertainment”. Not only does he watch Motorsports but he is also obsessed with Forza, a racing video game series.

With Max’s accomplishments throughout high school, Max credits his parents as his source of inspiration who always told him to “be brave”.  Max also looks up to certain role models such as actors, musicians, advocates, and athletes.

Max plans to take geology at College of DuPage this August. A man with big dreams, he wants to become a geologist at the Field Museum, learn more about Earth’s history, and possibly discover a new kind of dinosaur.