Bethel Park High School senior Ella Milliken has been named the Bethel Park Rotary Club's April 2025 Student of the Month, a recognition of her exceptional academic performance, strong leadership, and tireless dedication to fostering inclusion within her school and community.
The daughter of Mike and Amy Milliken and younger sister to Reagan, a senior at Ohio State University, Ella is a standout student with a remarkable weighted GPA of 4.57. She recently committed to the University of Pittsburgh, where she will major in chemical engineering, citing both a strong academic fit and a comfortable personal fit. She also considered Penn State, West Virginia University, and Bucknell before choosing to stay close to home.
At Bethel Park High School, Ella is well known for her ability to balance rigorous academics with a wide range of extracurricular and service commitments. She serves as Senior Class President and is a member of the Ways and Means Committee. As a National Honor Society member, she holds the role of Community Service Chair, and she is also a Student Government Senator—one of just five representatives from her class.
Ella is equally active in athletics, competing on Bethel Park’s indoor and outdoor track and field teams as a discus and shot put thrower, while also running cross country.
One of her most meaningful leadership roles is as Secretary of the school’s Best Buddies chapter, where she helps foster friendships and inclusive opportunities for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Her passion for supporting individuals with special needs extends far beyond the classroom.
“I am passionate about working with children with special needs,” said Milliken. “A lot of people think don’t understand that they are teenagers just like their classmates and they face all the same pressures as everyone else—they just often think about things in a different way.”
Ella also works summers at Camp Aim, a YMCA-run program designed for children with special needs, where she’s seen firsthand the positive transformation that can occur over just a few weeks. “It can be so rewarding to see the improvement our campers make,” she said. “Some kids won’t come near you to start, and in just six weeks they make a dramatic improvement.”
Her employment and volunteer commitments are just as impressive. She teaches swimming lessons to children at Highpoint Fitness and dedicates time to her church, Christ United Methodist, volunteering at community events like fish fries. Last year, she helped organize a toy drive through a partnership with Play It Forward Pittsburgh, collecting gently used toys from her school community to donate to families in need.
Ella’s academic interests are just as focused as her extracurricular passions. “I have always wanted to go into engineering because I love math and science,” she said. “Originally, I thought I might become an environmental engineer, but after taking some chemistry courses here at Bethel Park High School, I realized I could combine those two passions—and chemical engineering seemed like the best route for me.”
The Bethel Park Rotary Club celebrates students like Ella who exemplify leadership, service, and a genuine commitment to making the world a better place. For more information about the Rotary Club and its programs, visit their Facebook page or contact a local Rotarian.
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