Initially, I was nervous about attending KO because I didn’t attend the KO Middle School. However, I was surrounded immediately by people who made me feel comfortable. My field hockey team was an automatic set of friends, and all the girls said, ‘If you need help navigating around campus, I’ll be there’ and ‘Here’s what you need to do to prepare for this teacher’s class.’ I also fell into another friend group of kids from the musical. KO is the kind of place where you find your people even if you don’t have the same interest. There are no walls among the students. Everyone was so friendly and easy to talk to. I love that there were kids in the musical who were also on the football team.

I was also concerned about the academic demands, but the teachers are great about making the material and classes intense and engaging while providing the resources to ensure you can succeed in those challenging environments. The teachers push you out of your comfort zone, so I have learned how to study better and manage my time. They have taught me to want to make myself grow,  improve, and not glide by. For instance, they encouraged me to participate in a law program at Georgetown one summer, and now I want to pursue law as a career. KO has made me want big things for myself.