Discus Awards

Academics

I have spent the last 13 years devoted to making the most out of my public school education; as the daughter of two engineers with their doctorates, education has always been something I have highly valued. At the end of my eleventh grade year, I was selected as a Junior Marshal at both the Fine Arts Center and Wade Hampton. I was chosen over other high schoolers in South Carolina as an academic winner in the MLK Youth Program and as a Wofford, Furman, and Clemson scholar due to my dedication to learning and hard work. I am also currently an AP Scholar and National Merit Semi-finalist.

By the end of my senior year, I will have completed 7 AP and 20 Honors courses, and at my graduation ceremony this June, I will be recognized as valedictorian of my high school.

Arts

The past four years I’ve spent half of the school day attending a “regular” academic high school and the other half at the Greenville County Fine Arts Center.

My time spent at the Fine Arts Center has allowed me to complete Advanced Placement portfolios in drawing and three-dimensional work. This expansion of my personal portfolio has led me to win school competitions like the FAC juried showcase held in the spring (first place in drawing my sophomore year and third place in ceramics my junior year), and local contests like AID Upstate's Greenville County High School Art Show, in which I took the Best-in-Show ribbon along with a five hundred dollar check. The piece that won the blue ribbon also sold for a few hundred dollars, and I have been commissioned for new pieces since then.

Community Service

All during my junior year, I found great joy in tutoring after school once a week; it was truly an honor to watch other students move closer to graduation. I still remember with great fondness the gratitude and compliments I received after helping my tutees finish their coursework, and don't think I'll ever be able to forget them.

Outside of the art studio, I help lead the FAC Events Committee, the staff responsible for coordinating dances and fundraisers. Recently, we organized a Halloween dance and donated the proceeds to the arts program at a local children's center.

Additionally, I am the Vice President of Wade Hampton High's National Honor Society chapter. I work with the executive staff to coordinate fundraisers that have benefited projects like Wounded Warrior and the Peace House