'Everyone is' or 'Everyone are'

Greetings,
I'm wonder which of the following is more correct:

'Everyone around here, even the officers, are really excited...' 'Everyone around here, even the officers, is really excited...'

I recognize the correctness of "Everyone is really excited" but, by the same token, saying "Everyone here is really excited" sounds wrong to me; so does "Everyone here are really excited" so I'm completely confused.

Can anyone shed some light for a poor lost soul such as myself.

Commander Venus+