你好！My name is Richy Yan, and I am a junior at the Massachusetts Academy of Math and Science. I am 16 years old, and I live with my mom and dad. My sending school is the Advanced Math and Science Academy.
My passion for math sparked in 4th and 5th grade, when I first participated in the Perennial Math Competition. It was my first time doing math in a non-conventional manner, and I enjoyed the unorthodox methods used to solve the problems. In 6th grade, I was admitted to the Advanced Math and Science Academy. I was part of their math team from 6th to 10th grade, where I've participated and won awards in IMLEM, AMC 8, MathCounts, WOCOMAL, AMC 10, and the AIME.
I’ve been part of my school's varsity tennis team since 9th grade. I made many friends on the tennis team, and learned lessons in teamwork and perseverance. In 10th grade, I played 2nd doubles for a good chunk of the season, sometimes moving up to 1st doubles and even 3rd singles.
I was part of my school’s Science Bowl team ever since 7th grade. I really enjoyed Science Bowl, as I made many new friends in there, and competing with other teams was always very fun. In the last two New England Regional Science Bowls, my team advanced to the playoffs.
I was part of my sending school’s student government for 9th and 10th grade, and I was elected to it again for 11th grade before I came here. Meetings happened every other Tuesday, and in meetings we discussed plans for upcoming events and other issues with the school. As part of student government, I helped set up many events, such as homecoming, prom, and pep rallies.
A large part of my community service is helping other people build their skills in math. Last year, I was an assistant coach for the AMSA Middle School Math Team, where I helped set everything up and build math competition skills in the middle schoolers. I greatly enjoy tutoring as it’s my way to give back to the community and because I greatly enjoy math.
My family travels a lot. Going to new places is very fun, and I can't wait to see where I go traveling next. Some notable places I've been to in my life are New York City, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago, London, Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Toronto.
Just like with math, I started fishing in 5th grade. I usually go fishing at Whitehall Reservoir in Hopkinton. It was there where I caught my largest fish, a 2.5lb largemouth bass. I have grown to appreciate fishing for the patience it requires and the connection to nature it gave me.
