Academics have always come easily to me. Still, when I was a freshman at my prep school in Newport Beach, California, I wanted to drop out and just drum. Luckily, a middle school friend beckoned me to Putney, and I still had the grades and test scores to get in.
“Funny enough, I dropped drumming at the beginning of my sophomore year as I found myself diving headlong into just about everything. Coming from a more urban environment, I got my hands dirty for the “first time” working in the school’s gardens. The coolest part about gardening for me was being able to eat the “vegetables of my labor” in the KDU the very day we picked them. The activity I remember most was horseback riding, which I did despite severe allergies to horses; I have no regrets, it was totally worth it.
“I’ve had quite a career in student leadership here. It all started my sophomore year when I became friends with two seniors, Nick and John, who were running at full tilt. They encouraged me to take advantage of the unique leadership opportunities offered; at their prompting I ended up serving on the Education Policy Committee. Then, taking after John, I served as a dorm head my junior year. I organized an Obama Chapter on campus through which over 10% of the student body volunteered. And finally, aspiring to be like Nick, I ran for head of school. It was an epic campaign … and an equally epic loss, but what an experience!
"I think it turned out for the better. My running mate and I ran again and were elected to serve on the school’s board of trustees. The board includes about thirty successful professionals who have taken a range of impressive paths through life. The quarterly weekend meetings are absolutely highlights of my year. They are nonstop, fast-paced, and intellectually challenging, but absolutely wonderful. Here I am, a guppy floating in the big blue ocean! But as worldly as the individual trustees are, they want to hear students’ perspectives. Consequently, we are treated with the respect of equals!
"Life in the woods is amazing. I'm living in one of the five cabins this year. My roommate and I have limited solar-powered electricity, no plumbing, single-pane windows, an iron stove, and a stack of wood to keep us comfortable and warm. Living independently of the dorms means we’ve been trusted by the school to act responsibly and take care of ourselves. Dorm life has its perks, namely convenience, but I wouldn’t trade my place in the loft of my cabin for the world.
"I'm taking six academic classes, Culinary Arts in the evening, working woods crew, and tutoring peers twice a week. I've just learned that I've been accepted to Middlebury College, where I'm looking forward to
studying foreign languages and international business. Because I’ve always been a great believer in the power of communication, Putney, with all its ethnic and cultural diversity, has been a great environment for me.
“At the beginning of the year, the director of our school spoke to the senior class about the effect our attitudes and actions would have on our younger peers. To prove her point, she asked us to pause and consider the legacies of past seniors, and the ways those legacies have affected us. I reflected on Nick and John’s influence and remembered all that they had taught me and pushed me to both do and become. Seniors do leave legacies, good or bad, whether they intend to or not. I hope to graduate having been a positive sphere of influence, having motivated my friends to turn all their potential energy kinetic."
