My hometown is the lovely Dudley in southern central Mass. In my free time, I enjoy reading science fiction novels, going for walks at the Quinebaug River Valley rail trail or Webster Lake, and baking scrumptious desserts. Listening to classic rock and practicing art forms such as crocheting and origami are also hobbies of mine.
For my first two years of high school, I attended Marianapolis Prep in Thompson, CT. There, I deepened my love for STEM in engineering classes such as Modeling for Problem Solving and Design Principles. In freshman year, my project studying the effect of color on simple reaction time earned first place in the school’s science fair.
Countless after-school hours were spent in the robotics room readying the school’s robot, Disco, for competition. In my sophomore year, I served as Mechanical and Programming Lead as well as Vice President of the Robotics club. In the 2022-2023 season, we used V5 equipment for the first time. This technology greatly enhanced the capabilities of our robot, so that in the spring we were able to place third at one of the qualifying competitions.
One of my favorite aspects of Marianapolis was the community feeling created by the Campus Ministry Team. I and the other leaders worked to sponsor events such as weekly rosaries, bingo nights, and winter hot cocoa carts. We also served as lectors, eucharistic ministers, and gift bearers during our all-school masses. Mrs. Fournier, the director of Campus Ministry, served as my confirmation sponsor as I prepared for the sacrament throughout sophomore year.
When I have a free afternoon, one of my favorite things to do is sit down with a good book and a cup of tea. My favorite genre is science fiction, but over the past few years I have also grown to appreciate classics and nonfiction.
With a 50 hour per year requirement, commitment to community service is a priority at MAMS.
What better way to spend a week of your summer than by teaching kids STEM? During the summers of 2022 and 2023, I served as a Volunteer Leadership Intern at the Camp Invention program hosted in Auburn, MA. There, I assisted teachers in the instruction of STEM-based activities for kindergarten through 6th grade campers. This year, I was stationed in the Pop-Up Venture room. There, campers created their own pop-up shops and learned about the many factors that must be considered when starting a business. With projects ranging from skateboard shops, to pizzerias, to a chain of pet stores, the campers were amazingly creative. I immensely enjoyed this experience, and would recommend it to any high schooler looking to engage in STEM based community service.
Click here if you would like to apply to be a Volunteer Leadership Intern!
Click here if you would like to register to be a camper at Camp Invention!
Each year in Massachusetts, STEM Week takes place during the third
week of October. During this week, STEM-themed events for youth take
place across the state. I, and many other Juniors and Seniors from
Mass Academy, took this opportunity to volunteer our time to teach 4th
through 7th-grade students about bird beak adaptations and spool racer
engineering.
In the weeks leading up to the event,
we prepped materials and slideshow presentations specific to the grade
level. Then, over two days, we got to work hands-on with the students
and teach them the STEM lessons. As a student of engineering, I
particularly enjoyed teaching the spool racer lesson. I was able to
watch the students intuitively go through the engineering design
process as they developed faster or more reliable race cars. At the
end of both lessons, there was a competition where the students got to
test out the creations they had made. It was truly heartwarming to see
how excited young students could be when STEM was presented to them in
an engaging way.
