After graduation what are your plans?

After Wootton I hope to attend Williams College to study on a pre-med track and major in psychology with a concentration in neuroscience. After college, I hope to attend medical school, and ultimately become either a neurosurgeon or a psychiatrist. I then plan on joining the United States Military, and in specific, the Army in order to give back to my country. At age 35 I hope to retire from Military service, and begin a career in public service. My goal is to achieve this by either joining the ranks of the United Nations and working my way up to becoming the Secretary General of the amazing diplomatic body, or run for Congress and ultimately have my first run for the President of the United States be in 2048 at the age of 45. 

Looking back, what advice would you give to students still in high school?

Take your time to enjoy your everyday life at Wootton. Although tests and quizzes may cause you to have temporary discomfort, the memories you make with your friends will last a lifetime. I will greatly miss walking the hallways with friends, the senior planning class “doing” their work everyday, the supportive staff and administration, and all in all the amazing environment that is within Wootton. 

What is your greatest accomplishment relating to Wootton?

I would say my personal greatest accomplishment relating to Wootton is being able to continue to give back to my community throughout all four years of my time. My personal favorite event that I was hoping to accomplish was getting either open lunch or food trucks for the Wootton community. During sophomore year, I was actually able to prepare a proposal with [Principal Kim] Boldon, and was planning on having multiple food trucks make their way to Wootton to sell to the Wootton students during lunch. I contacted the food trucks, and got four on board that would come on down. However, sadly, Covid shut down the schools within a week of my receiving the word to go from the food trucks. Thus, I was not able to present the final plan to Ms. Boldon for the food trucks. I also greatly enjoyed leading many class events throughout the years. 

Any moments at Wootton that will reside with you for the rest of your life?

I would say that the moments at Wootton that will reside with me for the rest of my life are different challenges arising when planning or starting a multitude of events. From experiencing hurricane level rain and winds while tye dying shirts during the summer for the class of ‘22 with my fellow class officers and not stopping our production line, to ultimately planning and producing a whole homecoming float in the span of five hours with nothing more than paper and loose cardboard pieces. I would say I will miss the resilience and persistence that Wootton has instilled into me. Ultimately, I have been able to learn from my times at Wootton that when you put your mind to something, you can achieve anything. 

But, my personal favorite times of year at Wootton have always been during the months of March and April. These were the campaign months. I always loved walking around at lunch and shaking the hands of every person in the Class of 2022, and hearing their concerns and earning their votes. I absolutely loved writing campaign speeches and ultimately filming them with the legendary filmmaker Ben Margolin. Passing out pins, putting up posters, and wearing suits to school provided a sort of adrenaline rush that I will surely miss experiencing in the future. 

What is something many people don’t know about you?

I am an ordained minister and am actually going to be officiating a wedding later in the summer. I am an avid fisherman and go fishing multiple times a month, and I am a second degree black belt and practiced for close to nine years.

You have a busy schedule, how did you manage stress throughout high school?

When you enjoy what you are doing, you do not experience stress. However, when I occasionally had more on my plate than I could manage, the thing that kept me grounded throughout was my daily planner. I wrote anything and everything in it, and it caused me to clear my mind of the tasks at hand and better be able to balance my responsibilities.

What are some ways you motivate yourself?

I motivate myself through my reading of biographies. Through these biographies, I am better able to imagine a future of success, and so I am motivated to strive to become like those I read about. From President Eisenhower to Emperor Constantine, to Rosa Parks, I am inspired daily, which causes me great motivation and fuels my drive.

What is your greatest strength/weakness?

I don’t look at it as strengths and weaknesses, but I am fortunate to have a strong base with family and great friends that help to make me a better person. Everything begins in your mind. With the right mindset, anyone can succeed. Thus instead of giving up, turn your struggles into power.

Any last words?

All I can conclude with is, thank you Wootton.