2019-2020 Avatar: Lorenzo Mahoney

Hello friends! My name is Lorenzo Mahoney and I am beyond ecstatic to be an Avatar for the 2019-2020 year.

A little about my story pre-Gatton: I’ve lived my entire life in Louisville, Kentucky and I spent the first two years of high school at Kentucky Country Day. There, between Quick Recall, KUNA, and cross country, most times my mentions of Gatton were met with a confusing stare. Nevertheless, the Academy has always been an idea in my head ever since I heard of it during my first year at VAMPY, a summer camp at WKU through the Center for Gifted Studies. Fast forward three years, and I was officially moving into Florence Schneider Hall with around a hundred new classmates, excited but anxious about what new adventures awaited me. Looking back now, little junior me had no idea what was in store.

First, academics. The rigor is unparalleled, but that is what makes achievement great. Before coming here, I had never taken a single biology class. One week in, I had already started research through the Genome Discovery and Exploration Program (GDEP) program to begin isolating and characterizing my own phage (a virus for bacteria) and attending lectures on proteins, genetics, and ecology. I was hooked. The classes at Gatton allow students to pursue STEM in a way unimaginable at their home schools, both in variety and depth. If you have a question, someone on campus has the answer.

Another aspect at Gatton I’m thankful for is the opportunities for research. After the GDEP program, which took me from a simple soil sample to seeing my phage under the electron microscope to presenting at WKU’s research conference, I was eager for more. So, with help from Gatton’s staff and a few emails and meetings with professors, I began biochemistry research with Dr. Sigrid Jacobshagen looking at circadian rhythms and growth rates of different strains of green algae in different growth mediums. The experience has not only helped me learn how to operate in a university lab but see firsthand the complex beauty of nature, all the way down to algal photoreceptors.

Outside the classrooms and labs, Gatton is more of a community than a school. The weekend movie screenings in the Den. Trips down to the recreational center with friends to exercise and de-stress. Helping each other through Calculus problem sets and computer science assignments. Through my junior year, I have been heavily involved in Party Club, a space for political discussion and debate, and our Envirothon team, learning about Kentucky’s wildlife, soil, and environmental issues. Under Gatton’s roof, there’s a group for everyone.

Coming up this summer, I am participating in one of the Academy’s Study Abroad programs, another thing that sets Gatton apart from most schools. To be receiving one of my English credits, I’m hopping across the “Pond” with around 50 of my classmates to visit England for three weeks and immerse myself in the worlds of Brontë, Austen, and Shakespeare. This is my first study abroad experience and I am excited for the trip of a lifetime. Overall, my first year at Gatton has been everything I hoped it to be and I can’t wait to have one more year with my fellow seniors and share it with the new juniors.

Lorenzo