Five sets of twins think twice, decide college is their future




DOUBLE THE FUN— From left, Oak Park High School twins Elizabeth and Katie Eng, 17; Chelsea and Nicole (Nicki) Toczauer, 18; Stephanie and Erica Soultanian, 17; Francesca and Alexandra Corley, 17; and Andrew and Jason Chen, 17, enjoy their final days on campus before Wednesday’s graduation. Andrew and Jason and Nicole and Chelsea are identical twins.

DOUBLE THE FUN— From left, Oak Park High School twins Elizabeth and Katie Eng, 17; Chelsea and Nicole (Nicki) Toczauer, 18; Stephanie and Erica Soultanian, 17; Francesca and Alexandra Corley, 17; and Andrew and Jason Chen, 17, enjoy their final days on campus before Wednesday’s graduation. Andrew and Jason and Nicole and Chelsea are identical twins.

The five sets of twins, some identical and some fraternal, graduating from Oak Park High School this year have distinguished the Class of 2010 with their academic feats, distinction in arts and music, and their dedication to community service.

Fraternal twins Alexandra and Francesca Corley are both exceptional students, talented singers and loving sisters who consider each other their best friend.

Both girls will attend the University of Southern California’s honor program in the fall and both received the school’s Presidential Scholarship, which will pay half their tuition for four years.

Alexandra will major in biological sciences.

“I look forward to getting involved in doing medical research in immunology and world diseases and possibly doing a study abroad program related to this field,” she said.

While Francesca is also interested in pursuing a science degree, she isn’t quite ready to declare her major. She says she will more than likely focus on music and one of the sciences, possibly physics.

Both girls have participated in Oak Park’s choir for four years— Alexandra as a soprano and Francesca as the unofficial leader of the alto section. The sisters also co-founded the school’s Shakespeare Club.

Andrew and Jason Chen, like the Corley twins, are accomplished students and musicians.

Identical, the Chen brothers share more than looks. They have both earned perfect grade-point averages and completed Advanced Placement course work offered at the school.

Andrew and Jason play piano and violin, and both are first chair violins for the Conejo Valley Youth Orchestra.

The Chen boys also played varsity tennis for a year, and they both volunteer at the Thousand Oaks Chinese School. They have volunteered to teach English to students at a university in southern Taiwan and will attend UC Berkeley in the fall, majoring in electrical engineering and computer science.

Andrew’s all-time favorite class was AP European history; Jason says that he will always remember his AP physics class.

Andrew says his father, Eric, has been the most influential person in his life, while Jason believes his mother, Teri, has had the most impact on his growth.

As for what the future holds, Andrew doesn’t want to venture a guess.

“That’s the beauty of life,” he said.

Identical twins Nicole (Nicki) and Chelsea Toczauer have both loved learning new languages— Nicki is fluent in French, while Chelsea has taken four years of Chinese, including an Advanced Placement class.

The Toczauer girls are taking separate paths to college. Chelsea plans to major in East Asian languages at USC, and Nicki will attend the University of Notre Dame’s honor program. She hasn’t chosen a major yet but is leaning toward medicine.

Chelsea says that the best thing about being a twin is that there “is always someone who understands you.” The annoying part, she said, is when people think you are telepathic.

Fraternal twins Erica and Stephanie Soultanian have participated in many extracurricular activities while maintaining top grades. They have been on the mock trial team for three years— Erica as captain for the prosecution and Stephanie as a lead defense witness. Both girls participated in the Edison Challenge, creating a lesson plan and research proposal, and teaching middle school students about solar energy.

Erica is a Junior Statesman of America, worked on the school’s literary magazine for a year and was active in Girl Scouts for seven years. She is fluent in Spanish, plays the clarinet and piano, plays soccer, tutors students in all grade levels and subjects, and volunteers for charities throughout the region.

A jewelry designer, Chelsea is already running a business. She has won awards and recognition and graduated summa cum laude with highest honors. Stephanie spent four years singing with the choir, has performed in drama productions at the school and volunteered at the Civic Arts Plaza and Discovery Center.

Stephanie will go to UC Berkeley, and Erica will move east to attend George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

Katie and Elizabeth Eng may be fraternal twins but they are hard to tell apart. Though they look and sound alike, the girls have different interests. Katie graduated from Oak Park High magna cum laude with highest honors and will attend California Polytechnic San Luis Obispo with the intent to major in statistics. She hopes to earn a PhD and work as a biostatistician.

Elizabeth, a cum laude graduate with honors, will pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Cal State San Jose and wants to work at Walt Disney Animation Studios.

Katie is a member of the National Honors Society and the California Scholarship Federation; she participated in cross country and track and field for three years.

Elizabeth is a top student and a member of the National Honors Society. She volunteered for LIFE Animal Rescue and also indulges a passion for art.

My sister and I are going our separate ways in college,” Elizabeth said, “and we’ll each probably be recognized as single, average individuals. Being recognized as a twin will be something I’ll surely miss.”

Grad Facts

Oak Park High School
Class of 2010


Alma Mater:

“Proud and Bold”
School Colors:

Black and Gold

Number of Graduating

Seniors:
305
Senior Class President:

Dana Saunders


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