Ross Lagoy, Student
Hello, my name is Ross Lagoy and I am 18 years old. I was born and raised in Leominster, Massachusetts. As a child I grew up being very active in many sports, and activities while keeping school as my top priority; main interests in math and science. I have a brother, Ryan, who is a year older than me and we share pretty much all of the same interests except for majors. He is an electrical and computer engineering double major at Boston University. My parents have occupations in engineering, fitness, and the medical industry, a great combination of backgrounds to look up to as a child, keeping me well rounded throughout my life.
My high school career was a very memorable one. I attended Leominster High School in 2008 as a freshman taking the most challenging classes offered for my grade level. I was really interested in math and science so I entered the science fair that year as a team project with my brother (which can be read about in my Publications list on the Home page). We made it to the state science fair at MIT for two consecutive years winning top award recognition along the way. I attended Mass Academy for my junior and senior year of high school, which were certainly the hardest, and best years of my life. It was a decision I made that defiantly changed my entire life. I would not be where I am academically and socially with out this unique high school experience. I am now pursuing a Biomedical Engineering degree at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and hoping to one day become a professor and own my own company.
Of the many sports I have participated in (i.e. golf, baseball, soccer, deck hockey, tennis, basketball, football, hunting, hiking, and dirt biking) I developed a love for a select few that I have been doing for quite a while. I have been skiing for ten years, beginning with lessons from my father when I was about seven years old. For the past four years I have been working a ski instructor at a local mountain during the winter. I’ve hiked Tuckerman’s Ravine with my brother and I hope to ski it some day with my brother and my father; putting our skiing skills to the test. I have been playing lacrosse since I was in eighth grade, when I fell in love with the sport. I have tried such a variety of sports when I was a kid and lacrosse was the one I decided I wanted to stick with and knew I had a passion for. It combines the intensity and quickness of hockey with the adrenaline pumping thrill of football and the necessary teamwork and strategy needed in soccer. I played on the Harvard youth team and multiple summer, winter and fall leagues through the Xcel lacrosse organization. I played for the U15 All-Star Team held at Harvard Stadium in Boston and later that year I made the varsity team at the high school as a freshman. I have stuck with lacrosse ever since even if it was playing catch with my brother on the beach or a small pick up game with a few friends. I now play midfiled for the starting line on WPIs lacrosse team.
I have been swimming for my whole life. I've never raced competitively but I have been a certified Lifeguard and Water Safety Instructor for the past three years. Because of my love for swimming I have experimented with many water activities that I also really enjoy doing as much as possible in my free time. Throughout middle and high school I purchased a sailboat and was on the local sailing team held on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Massachusetts. I raced in regattas at that lake, and multiple times on the Charles River in Boston. I have been a member at the Boston Community Boat House for several years, earning my helmsman certification and numerous others. Combining my interest of sailing and engineering I made my own land sailboat out of common materials and a white-14 sailboat sail. On a really windy day you can reach speeds to about 20mph in a parking lot or along the side of the beach. I really enjoyed completing this project on my own, for I learned so many things in both engineering and sailing that I would not have discovered without its completion.
With a good amount of my time being spent at boathouses when I was on the sailing team, I picked up surfing, windsurfing, ocean kayaking and much interest in other ocean sports. I have been surfing for five years, taking trips that span from local North Eastern beaches to Hawaii's North Shore, short boarding and long boarding for fun and competitively. When the waves aren't surfable here on the North East, which is more than I wish, I picked up skim boarding and long boarding (long boarding is also a type of activity that resembles surfing on land). Surfing is the best sport in the water. When you talk to a surfer and they describe the sport after they've ridden their first line they will tell you it's the best feeling; every surfer becomes hooked from that point on. Recently, my brother and I have been taking weekend trips to local beaches trying to get as much surfing in as possible. Whether it's snowing, raining, or blazing hot and the waves are good, we will be out there in the water enjoying Mother Nature’s gift of rideable wave energy.
Music is also something that I cannot live without. I was the lead drummer in the all city jazz band, have my own Pearl Expert Series drum set, and played in a small band with my brother who was learning electric and acoustic guitar through middle and high school. To this day I still learn music by ear whether it be on the piano (which I recently taught myself how to play) or the drums, or ukulele. I enjoy listening to reggae (Pepper), hip-hop (Lil Wayne), alternative rock (Jack Johnson, All Time Low), and even country (Kenny Chesney) and classical. I love music and I listen to it all the time, teaching myself the songs I really enjoy on the piano, ukulele, and drums.
Finally, I owe all of my successes and achievements to my parents; with out their motivation, support and guidance I would not be the person I am today. Whether it was being forced to go to my eight o'clock swimming lessons every morning during the summer, or to do flash cards from the back seat in the car during the family trip to the beach as a child, they were there to mold and create the life I am living now. I am extremely grateful for everything they have done for me. Everything great comes with hard work, and this hard work will pay off in the end. My hard work and my parents hard work raising me certainly is beginning to show, motivating me to have ambitions and goals that seem impossible to some, but realistic and achievable to me. So surf on, lax it up, study hard, ride the pow, be smart and achieve all.
If you have any questions feel free to contact me at anytime!
Biomedical Engineering Department - Worcester Polytechnic Institute
100 Institute Road, Worcester, MA 01609-2280 | Phone: +1-508-831-5236 | Fax: +1-508-831-5680 | rosslagoy@wpi.edu