My name is Andrew Kalashnikov, coming fromNeedham High Schoolin Needham, MA. I live with my parents and my two younger brothers. My parents are immigrants from Russia, and I grew up speaking Russian as my primary language. I decided to go to MAMS because I enjoy doing math and science, and it gave me new opportunities to do so. I was also intrigued by the small school atmosphere at MAMS.

In my free time, some of my favorite activities are hanging out with friends and playing sports. My favorite sport to play is soccer, but skiing is a close second. I will also sometimes play basketball or volleyball with friends. Finally, I enjoy playing card and board games with my friends. I also love to travel, especially to Europe. My favorite country I've been to is probably Iceland because of the magnificent nature.

When it comes to academics, most of my extracurriculars are math-focused, as this is the subject I have enjoyed most so far. I have written two mathematical papers as part of thePrimes Step program. I also enjoy participating in math and computer science competitions such as AIME and USACO. Based on these interests, I was able to secure a Data Science Internship at Cambridge Mobile Telematics. This Boston company focuses on improving driver safety and reducing insurance costs by monitoring driver performance. As a part of this internship, I worked with machine learning models to improve our crash detection algorithms. I also enjoy debate, and I'm a part of the Needham Speech and Debate team.

I did volunteering during October break with MAMS by developing and teaching a STEM class at Tatnuck Elementary School in Worcester, along with a group of my classmates. We taught a class of 3rd graders about the basics of magnets and it was a great experience as they were very eager to learn. I learned a lot from this experience, especially about the importance of keeping your audience engaged when teaching and how to work with kids. I was definitely glad to have had this experience, and it inspired me to start tutoring again, which I had taken a break from doing. I plan to complete the rest of my community service hours by leading classes, games and activities at a Russian summer camp my family attends every summer. As one of the oldest kids at the camp, I will run classes in math and science for the younger kids, as well as organizing games and activities for the kids. I will also spend time helping with other tasks at the camp, such as cooking and cleaning. I am looking forward to this experience, as this is a place that I enjoyed for many years and I want to be able to give this experience to others.