Justin Kwok of Upper Brookville is the valedictorian of the Locust Valley High School Class of 2026, having earned a cumulative weighted average of 109.73, all the while balancing his studies, film projects, Jesters’ productions, musical performances, track and field and his personal hobby power-lifting.
Kwok has spent his high school years following his passions, unafraid to take leaps and meet new people. He has created lasting memories and gained valuable, hands-on experiences in his favorite clubs and classes, including AP Music Theory, IB Filmmaking and the school newspaper, The Spectrum.
An accomplished cellist, Kwok has worked diligently with music department staff, achieving an All-County designation this school year. He’s played the instrument since he was in third grade and continues to grow due to his efforts and his strong relationship with his music educators, such as Ms. Lisa Conti.
During his sophomore year, Kwok would hear about the chaos and excitement of the drama performances from Ms. Conti, who produces the Jesters’ shows, and his music classmates. Before auditioning for his first show, “She Kills Monsters,” Kwok stayed two hours after callbacks making new friends in the crew. That night he told his mother that he had found something he wanted to dedicate himself to throughout his high school years.
“I found so many people that I could talk to and tell stories with and I found that so valuable,” Kwok said. “When I’m on stage with another person, I feel like I can connect with them and ignore the fact that I am in front of a massive audience.”
Today, Kwok calls his decision to join the Jesters the best decision he’s made in his high school career. The passion within the drama department community has been exhilarating and pushed Kwok to continue growing as a performer.
“The idea of putting yourself out there on the stage, being able to tell a story that you and your classmates are passionate about is amazing,” Kwok said. “At the end of it all, you also make incredibly strong connections with everyone in the cast and crew.”
Filmmaking has occupied much of Kwok’s time during and after school, whether he is in the classroom learning about different techniques for shooting and editing or out and about putting those lessons to good use in his projects. He has been a mainstay at the Locust Valley High School Film Festival.
This year, Kwok has also earned outside film accolades, winning Best Use of Character in a project called “Chronicle of a Boy Displaced” with classmates Raffaele Giannattasio and Dean Wolfe at the 72-Hour Film Festival at Five Towns College in the fall and having his mini-documentary, “Virtual West Changemaker” included in Roku’s Changemakers series as part of a national competition.
With all the hours spent on classwork, studying and these numerous extracurriculars, you would probably think Kwok would choose a relaxing hobby to decompress, but his go-to pet project has become power-lifting. He started during his freshman year as a way to stay fit and fill up his free time, but it quickly became an outlet for Kwok to explore a new experience. Even this has now turned into a point of pride for Kwok, as he qualified for and competed in the USA Powerlifting Northeast Regionals in Albany, New York this past September.
“It became this outlet for me to feel something different from what I experienced in theater and with my cello,” Kwok said. “It’s taken me to so many different places, and I’m very excited to see where it goes after that.”
Kwok is set to attend Brown University in the fall, hoping to focus on environmental justice and filmmaking. He’s already working with the Cinema Arts Centre in Huntington to screen films and produce documentaries focused on conservation and is ready to bring those interests with him to Rhode Island. Kwok hopes to build a career in filmmaking and media in general to continue to tell stories about causes that compel him.