Peter J. Pe-track, 16, a junior at Lehighton Area High School has been selected for membership in the National Society of High School Scholars.

The society recognizes top scholars and invites only those students who have achieved academic excellence. The announcement was made by NSHSS founder and Chairman Claes Nobel, a senior member of the family that established the Nobel prizes.Petrack is an honors student ranked fifth in his class. He is a member of Who's Who in Math and has been a member of the Johns Hopkins University CTY gifted program since sixth grade. In seventh grade he received special commendation from the university for scoring higher on SAT's than the average high school senior.At LAHS Petrack is a member of the National Honor Society, the Scholastic Scrimmage Varsity and TV Teams, the Varsity Chess Team, and is a seven-year member of Odyssey of the Mind, currently serving as team captain. He has also represented LAHS in the PA Citizens Bee and the Carbon County Youth Leadership Camp.An avid trombone player, plays first chair trombone with the high school Jazz Band, and also plays with the Lehighton Band, the Lehighton Boys & Girls Band, the Zion Festival Orchestra, and the Zion Opera Workshop Pit Orchestra. He also studies piano. He has attended Moravian College Summer Jazz Camp for four years, where he is a member of the advanced 'Alpha' combo; and the COTA Jazz Camp at Delaware Water Gap.Petrack plans to attend college to major in music composition. He has written several pieces of music in both the jazz and classical genres, including "Remembering," a classical piece he arranged for band and which served as his graduation project.Petrack is the son of Jessica Fahey-Petrack of Lehighton and the late Pete Petrack, and the grandson of Jessis B. Fahey of Lehighton and the late John. J. Fahey Sr., and Dorothy Petrack Christopher of Pittsburgh and the late Peter "Perry" Petrack.Formed in 2002, the National Society of High School Scholars recognizes academic excellence at the high school level and encourages members of the organization to apply their unique talents, vision and potential for the betterment of themselves and the world. There are more than 530,000 society members in over 160 countries.