Gatton Academy – Page 26 – The Gatton Academy News

Avatar Intro: Rebecca Wood

August 19, 2015 | 2015-2016, Avatars, Rebecca Wood | No Comments

Neatly packaged bags, clothes baskets filled to the brim, the familiar sight of textbook boxes – although the building is different, the setting is all too familiar. As I return to the Gatton Academy, a community of acceptance and fun times, I realize the impact that this program has had on my life.

The decision to come to Gatton was a burdensome task. My brother had graduated in the Class of 2013. I didn’t think I wanted to attend an entirely STEM school, nor did I want to abandon my sports, friends, or dog. I reluctantly applied and was granted an interview. After a four-hour drive from Maysville to Bowling Green, I arrived on the beautiful Western Kentucky University campus, and even saw a white squirrel! Through speaking with student volunteers, staff, and other applicants, I realized that this ‘nerdy’ school might be a place I could call home.

Even though the transition of giving up racing cross country and track, as well as playing soccer, driving a car, and seeing my home friends regularly was unpleasant, I soon grasped how positively significant Gatton would be on my life. The people, the community, the dorm life. The late night runs, the volleyball games, the dance parties. The research, the (finally!) challenging courses, the professors. With every passing day, the Academy became even more of a wonderland. The early tears turned into 2 a.m. laughs, and homesickness to “Mom, I think I’ll stay this weekend, too.”

I can honestly say that this year was the first in which I was sincerely looking forward to going back to school. I am enthusiastic to share what I have learned over the past two semesters with my ‘baby juniors’ and to strengthen the bonds I have made with fellow students, instructors, and staff. I am excited to study Mathematics, French, and Environmental Science, along with pursuing Biophysics research. It is going to be a great year, because with this community, how could it not?

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Avatar Intro: Michael Belcher

August 18, 2015 | 2015-2016, Avatars, Michael Belcher | No Comments

Belcher, Michael 1 Hello, my name is Michael Belcher and I am a senior from Glasgow, KY. I attended Barren County High School for my freshman and sophomore years. This year I have the honor to be an Avatar for the Academy and figured I should just start off by telling you a bit about myself.

Academically, I love and am best at Mathematics and Computer Science. I enjoy reading, playing sports, and video games. From being able to become heavily involved in Math research on campus to traveling to Harlaxton Manor in England over the summer I had the best year of my life. I am super excited about my senior year at the Academy and all that comes with it. This year I hope that our class can be the role models and helpers that the juniors will want and need. My goal for my senior year is to have a productive year and hopefully pass on the tradition of community and excellence to the junior class. Feel free to ask me any questions or talk to me about anything at any time.

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Avatar Intro: Lauren Pedersen

August 18, 2015 | 2015-2016, Avatars, Lauren Pedersen | No Comments

Pop quiz. Which of the following do you agree with?

You are a certain type of person, and there is not much that can be done to really change that.
No matter what kind of person you are, you can always change substantially.
You can do things differently, but the important parts of who you are can’t really be changed.
You can always change basic things about the kind of person you are.

Statements 2 and 4 reflect the growth mindset which purports that a person’s qualities can be improved upon through effort and perseverance. On the other hand, statements 1 and 3 embody the idea of the fixed mindset, or the belief that a person’s qualities are permanent and resistant to change.

I know for many seniors the preceding statements produce fits of unwanted adventure week PTSD centering on reading the book “Mindset” (I cringed as I made this reference). However, reminiscing upon my first year at Gatton, I have found surprising truth in the growth mindset. Upon arriving at The Gatton Academy, I believed in the growth mindset, but I didn’t think it would directly affect me. Other people could change, but I was different. I was as stable as the oxygen we breathe. But just as oxygen changes when it forms chemical bonds, the bonds I formed with my classmates transformed me. Perhaps it was the 2 AM code debugging, the Netflix movie marathons, and the numerous kindergarten days that facilitated this change. Gatton has allowed me to venture down an endless path of self-exploration. At my home school, in Knox County, I was known as “that smart kid”. However, in an environment where each student reflects these qualities, it enabled me to shape myself into so much more. I have become an extroverted introvert, an avatar, a pilot, a procrastinator of laundry, a researcher, and a SCUBA diver.

I am eager to continue my journey of self-exploration through my senior year. I hope to teach my juniors how to maximize their meal plans, navigate campus like a true college student, and take advantage of not only the academic opportunities that Gatton has to offer but the social aspects as well.

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Avatar Intro: Rohan Deshpande

August 18, 2015 | 2015-2016, Avatars, Rohan Deshpande | No Comments

Before coming to Gatton, I had lived an academically deprived life. I was born and raised in a rural Wisconsin town with a population of about 2,500, so the scholastic opportunities were hard to come by. Up until 5^th grade, everybody had the same schedule because there were only six different classes per grade. However, in 7^th grade, my family moved to Oldham County, which marked a notable improvement in the quality of education, and I was grateful. In late November of my 8^th grade year, my older brother came home talking about this “Gatton place.” He applied, got in, and told me all about the experience. Based on his words of praise, I decided to apply and, fortunately, I was accepted. That day, my brother told me Gatton was an entirely different environment when compared to “regular” high school, and he was right.

My first year at the Academy was unlike anything I had experienced before. I had no parents to nag me and constant social interactions. I enjoyed staying up late talking to my peers about whatever came to mind; various conversation topics included our daily struggles with our classes, recent sports and video game standings, and anything else that caught our eye during the day. Although the courses were more difficult than my previous high school, I truly felt relaxed. If there was any school work or personal hardships I was going through, there was always someone to talk to. Looking back on my first year, I have no regrets and I hope the second year goes as smoothly as the first. I have never studied, traveled, or had as much fun as I did my first year at Gatton and I look forward to the sharing the experience with the next class.

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Avatar Intro: Niven Achenjang

August 18, 2015 | 2015-2016, Avatars, Niven Achenjang | No Comments

After finishing my last final of the spring semester, having overcome a beast of a 10-page CS (computer science) paper, 18 hours of difficult classes (plus seminar), and the highest levels of procrastination and laziness I have ever experienced in my life, I was ready for summer vacation. I needed the break not only to ease off and forget about class, but also to take a step back and process everything I had gone through the previous year. In one year, I had moved 3 hours away from my parents, began new, close friendships, learned more than I had in any previous year, and matured a great deal.

Looking ahead to what this year holds, I expect it will be full of excitement, trials, and of course, new experiences. I look forward to being able to take more advance courses, and plan on learning from the mistakes I made last year. As an example, I plan on managing my time better. During junior year, I spent little time being productive and did not put in much effort to get to know everyone; I hope this year to more responsibly divide my time and to spend it with a larger range of people. In addition to this, I look forward to the memories, both seen and unforeseen, that I will inevitably make. I expect to play my first intramural sport at WKU, do a research project, and meet a host of new people; these all feel like they will be very memorable experiences.

Throughout this blog, I have spoken more about what I do than about who I am. Simply put, I am a guy who enjoys math, computer science, sarcasm, and physical activities. Without going into too much detail about myself, if you want someone to talk math and CS with, you need someone to play Frisbee with, you want to go running with someone, or you just want to share a joke with someone, I’m your man.

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Avatar Intro: Jenna Ellis

August 18, 2015 | 2015-2016, Avatars, Jenna Ellis | No Comments

Hi I’m Jenna! I’m from Gallatin County in Northern Kentucky, and I originally went to Gallatin Co. HS. When I first came to Gatton, my interests were in microbiology. I originally did research with the Genome Discovery and Exploration Program. After my first semester at The Gatton Academy, I became interested in Computer Science. During this past summer, I conducted research in Computer Science with a past professor, (and a fellow senior, Eura Shin) that dealt with the mathematic topic of Knot Theory and knot simplification programs. Beyond school, I enjoy working out, listening to music, watching How I Met Your Mother and Breaking Bad, hanging out with friends, and volunteering to help with activities at the Academy.

The Academy has presented me with so many great opportunities to expand my knowledge, make great friends, and put myself out in the world for the first time on my own. I couldn’t imagine being any other place!

During my senior year, I look forward to getting to know all of the incoming juniors, and helping them make their first semesters here as successful and enjoyable as possible. I’m also excited to share my great experiences at the Academy with prospective students and their parents from all around the state. Gatton is a truly one of a kind community perfectly suited for the gifted students of Kentucky, and I’m so excited to see what kind of fun my senior year will hold!

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Avatar Intro: Annie B. Wetzel

August 18, 2015 | 2015-2016, Annie B. Wetzel, Avatars | No Comments

I was raised in Princeton, a small town where everybody’s name is ingrained in your memory by grade school and you can always count on a quick arrival to any destination due to the fact that there are only two major stoplights. My imagination and yearning for adventure are the products of growing up on a cattle farm outside the city lines.

In 2014, I packed my bags and headed off to The Gatton Academy. It was my chance to break the tight bonds of a small town and to explore a new world where I would be challenged and among likeminded students.

When my mom would call and ask how the Academy was on a scale of 1 to 10, I would always reply, “10.” I loved every minute of my first year. I was quickly immersed in the cultures of both Gatton and Western Kentucky University. When I wasn’t studying or doing homework, I would hang out with friends or binge watch an assortment of Netflix shows (because if you watch Grey’s Anatomy you are basically a surgeon, right?). I met some of my best friends over the course of a year. It is hard not to become close when you live under the same roof. Late night dance parties, cookie pizza runs, and treks around campus became normal everyday life activities.

The Gatton Academy may have the stereotypical reputation in which everyone slaves over schoolwork and never sees daylight in order to master various subjects, but that is far from the truth. I have laughed more than ever, danced more than ever, and discussed truly interesting topics more than ever. The Academy is just as social as it is academic.

I look forward to spending my last year soaking up every moment. I always loved sharing my experience at the Academy with friends and family back home and I now have the opportunity to speak to various students, parents, and others interested in learning more about my school. I cannot wait to begin my senior year and am excited to see what the new school year will bring.

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Senior Reflection: Kelly McKenna

August 17, 2015 | Senior Reflection | No Comments

Two years ago when I attended my orientation before coming to the Gatton Academy, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. At the time I knew I was going to the Academy to get more of a challenge in school, but I never expected what I received. I never expected to find completely new subjects I loved, visit 3 different countries, go to a national research conference, and make the greatest friends I have ever had.

Starting at the Academy I was ready to become a math major, but through taking other classes at the Academy, I found a love for both computer science and chemistry. Throughout my junior year, I tried to decide what I wanted to major in, and towards the very end I looked at my options with combining math, chemistry, and computer science. With this search I found the mystical field of chemical engineering. With more of an idea of what I was going to major in, I focused my senior year schedule to include more math and science classes. One of the things that I love about the Academy is the fact that I now have credit for the first four math classes and the first four chemistry classes I would have to take in college. This is a huge advantage over my home high school where I would be bringing in a lot less hours than I am now.

I was very lucky while at the Academy and I was able to participate in the Study Abroad program, visiting Harlaxton the summer between my junior and senior year, Greece the winter of my senior year, and China this May. All three of these trips were incredibly different, but more fun than I would have ever imagined. On a study abroad trip, you spend a lot of time with the people you are traveling with and get to know them so much more than if you were just spending time in the Academy. I would have never thought that in the same year I could have see a Les Miserables play on the West End in London, cheer at a Chelsea FC match, visit where Ancient Greece created democracy at the Parthenon, actually walk where the Ancient Chinese built a wall thousands of miles long, and where world records were beaten in the 2008 Olympics. Studying abroad with the Academy has changed my life so much, making me completely comfortable getting around in major world cities through taxi rides, walking, and taking the subway.

My second semester at the Academy I starting working on an independent research project, and just like so many things I did, I had no clue to what was going to happen. I enjoyed research so much that even though I was spending anywhere from 10 – 15 hours in the lab, I really did not care because I enjoyed the work. My work paid off with a publication on my first project, and then a trip to the national American Chemical Society’s spring conference. At the conference I presented in a poster session designed for graduate students (4 – 6+ years older than me), and I won a blue ribbon for a finalist in distinguished poster, which was such an honor to receive.

The one thing I will miss the most about the Academy is all of my friends. I never really had many friends I would hang out with in high school, but then once I came to the Academy I made an awesome group of friends. My junior year I had a role model to look up to, and my senior year I had a group of three juniors that I would try to help in any way I possibly could. Though the late night talks, stressing, and advice giving may not be a reality for me at the Academy anymore, I know I will still be in touch with all my great friends from the Academy years after we graduate college. Overall, I was very hesitant to first apply and go to the Gatton Academy, but I would never change my decision because I know I have had the best possible high school experience because of the Gatton Academy.

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Senior Reflection: Michael Evans

August 17, 2015 | Senior Reflection | No Comments

I have my regrets: classes skipped, tests that went unstudied for, and maybe the several hundreds of hours of Super Smash Brothers that I played with my wing (still not sure about that one). It isn’t like those things keep me up at night, though. My time at the Academy is the highlight of my life so far; any regrets that I have about it are minuscule in comparison to its myriad positives.

I never had a dull moment while I was there. I ran the Film Club, traveled overseas, went skiing, took a guitar class, and participated in too many other activities to list. To me, though, the most enjoyable and important part of my two years living in Florence Schneider Hall was that I socialized to an extent there that I never had at my old school. Because of the way that everything was set up, I was constantly surrounded by people with similar interests and personalities to my own. From long conversations about movies, religion, relationships, and stand-up comedy, to the late nights playing Smash Bros. (definitely not a regret now that I think about it) and frantically searching for pizza change, my time with my friends is (and probably always will be) the most cherished part of my Gatton experience.

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Senior Reflection: Josh Stewart – Making Adjustments

August 17, 2015 | News, People, Senior Reflection, Students | No Comments

It’s hard to believe it has been about a few months since graduation. It’s even harder to believe that I’m not in high school anymore. As much as an adjustment moving to the Academy was, going back to “normal” life is also somewhat of a challenge. Instead of constantly thinking about the closest due dates and the nearest exams, I’m busy staving off boredom. I have to remind myself frighteningly often that I no longer have to check Blackboard or Mastering Physics every hour. I’m getting used to driving again, and I no longer freak out when I check the time and realize I’m not home at 10:30 for a curfew check. I’m learning how to cook again, even as much as it pains me to pass a Subway or Chick-fil-a on the way home. Readjusting to life at home is a nice change, but I’d be lying if I said it was easy. Learning to cook, driving around busy downtown Louisville, and enjoying the company of my family are not difficult. Coming to terms with what I have left behind is.

Gatton was home for the past two years. My own house felt like more of a second home than Gatton did. Parting ways with the Gatton family was harder than moving away from my hometown of sixteen years. The bonds and friendships forged through my junior and senior years are unlike any I have ever had or will have. Never again will I connect in the same ways with such an exemplary group of individuals as I have. Those bonds were forged through countless hours of Super Smash Bros, endless TV, movie, and video game quotes and references, some tireless nights of horribly terrific dancing, and the occasional sleepless nights spent in conversation or in preparation for a trip to Waffle House at six in the morning. I will miss living in the same building with some of the closest friends I’ve ever had.

Senior year just may have been the best year of my life thus far; 2015 was a great year to be a senior at the Gatton Academy. It has been a very exciting year. Gatton was again named the top high school in the nation, plans to expand the Academy were officially announced, and some truly awesome faculty and staff were welcomed in to the Gatton family. General Bolden, astronaut and director of NASA, dropped in to say hi to us students. Bill Nye stopped by to speak exclusively with some lucky Gatton students before giving the whole of WKU an excellent show. Jody Richards, Governor Beshear, and Mr. Gatton himself were welcomed to the Academy for an afternoon of celebration with students, staff, guests, and parents. And who could forget the generosity of Mother Nature and Skipper Bob? About two cumulative weeks of cancelled class provided some excellent opportunities for popcorn, guiltless all-nighters, and huge, precision-engineered blanket forts. The class of 2015 is, in a way, the end of an era. We are the last graduating class to have walked the halls of the current Florence Schneider Hall. Things will never quite be the same at Gatton after this year, but that surely isn’t a bad thing.

Leaving behind Gatton is a lot more complicated than just leaving Florence Schneider Hall. It’s leaving behind your fondest memories. It’s leaving behind some of the coolest people you’ve ever known, some that you’ll keep up with and stay close to for the rest of your life and some you might never see again. It’s even leaving behind a culture you’ve helped craft and come to call your own. But we leave knowing that we are thoroughly prepared to face almost any challenge that college life might throw at us, something that only a handful of high school students can say with such confidence.

With that being said, I have a few final words. To the class of 2015: thanks for the memories and the best years of my life. To the class of 2016: it’s been a privilege, and I can’t wait to read your senior reflections and hear about how awesome your senior year was. And to the upcoming class of 2017: buckle up, because you’re about to board an emotional rollercoaster of lows and highs, but it will be the best ride of your life, I guarantee it.

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