We're back with Part 2, our second installment of our "Portrait of a Senior" series, where we continue to share interviews of our graduating seniors. We will get to hear this year's graduating class reflect on their years at Trinity Academy and their plans for the future. If you missed our first email, you can still read Part 1 here. 

What is your first memory of Trinity Academy?

I remember orientation day of 6th grade. The girls played a game where you would stand on different ends of the courtyard and call each other over, trying to learn each other's name. I thought, "Oh no! I don't remember anyone's name!" I always felt timid and on edge at that age. But my older sister had gone to Trinity, and started when there were only 13 students. I was excited to get to experience it all for myself.

Middle school can be a tough time: you're making new friends and adjusting to academic expectations. 

On the social side, it took a while for me to be able to open myself up to people fully. Being in an environment where everyone is so loving helped me become my own person. I was on top of the academic part. I would go home and get all my homework done first thing. I would go to bed early. I loved it.

Did anything change in high school?

As a middle schooler, I didn’t really enjoy reading. 9th grade Humane Letters was life changing, because of the way the history and literature was aligned. Literature gives you a window into the inner lives of characters. There's nothing hidden on the page. I started to see that, in history, humanity is on display in a similar way. You see what motivates people, or what they desire, on a different scale.

What has been your favorite book in Humane Letters?

This year, it's Paradise Lost. The way Milton portrayed Satan really took me aback. I felt so similar to him in certain ways—I'd never tried to relate to Satan in any way! But in the poem he was so real and disturbingly compelling, more like us than we would like to admit. In 11th grade, it was Aristotle's Ethics. I think of the part about the perfect friendship all the time. Unlike the friends who just meet your needs, "perfect" friends are the people you could live with, who could help you grow in virtue. I also loved Frederick Douglass' autobiography. It's so beautiful to encounter people's experiences.

What has come as a challenge? Is there a class you might not have chosen to take in another environment?

Calculus. It's taught me to ask questions! In previous years I spent too long not asking, thinking I'd figure it out later on my own... in Calculus, that didn't work. Mr. Willard has really supported me through the struggles! I came to the realization: I'm not the best at this. Seeing others who are, for instance, Ronan, and rejoicing with him that he has that gift—it's great. I have my own gifts, just different!

What are some extracurriculars you’ve been involved with at Trinity?

I've done TACO since 8th grade. It has been a good experience to get to know students in other grades. I love basketball—this season was probably my favorite. The 9th graders had so much energy! It's a very small team each year, so we have to work hard the entire game. There aren't many subs. But I feel it brings us together, even when we're so tired.

What is your favorite Trinity Academy tradition?

Squads. It's wonderful to see seniors take leadership of the school each year. I didn't realize until now how hard it is. It takes time to prepare! To make it work, we seniors have to compete amongst ourselves to make it fun and competitive for the others. I also like standing with my squad in the morning and asking, say, a 6th grader: how can I pray for you today? It's really unique.

What's next for you, and what do you hope it will be like?

I’ll be studying nursing at the University of Portland. I hope to have more opportunities to serve people, especially those in vulnerable situations.

What is a first memory of Trinity Academy?

I came as a shadow student and visited the 9th grade. I was shadowing Nora Clark, but it felt like I was shadowing the entire class, because they immediately surrounded me and were all so nice to me. I remember a very fun Humane Letters class. They were discussing the Federalist Papers, which I hadn't read, but just listening to their conversation and seeing the goofy things they drew on the whiteboard helped me understand what they were talking about. I thought, “I love seminar!”

What has been your favorite book in Humane Letters?

Dante's Inferno is one of my favorite things I've ever read. I could talk about it for hours. It was beautifully organized.

What difference do you think it made to your education to come to Trinity for high school?

It was an academic challenge, because I was a bit behind as a 9th grader. I took remedial Latin and a few years of summer school in math. I'm glad I persevered! My faith is a lot stronger than it would have been otherwise. Having a faith-filled community of friends at school and participating in Action has been so helpful and so fun. I don't think I had seriously read the Bible before coming to Trinity! I know I had read quotations and heard it at Mass, but I didn't have a real grasp. I got that in our Scripture courses. Sadly, at other schools, students treated religion classes like a joke. Trinity's 9th grade Catholic Doctrine class taught me to understand what it meant to be Catholic.

You love drama and cinematography. How has that interest worked into your courses at Trinity?

It all started when I got a props and costumes book about the Harry Potter movies. Props and practical effects became my passion. I hadn't realized that there was a direction of study that involved crafts! Over the years, I've done Christian Youth Theater and been on crews. I like being part of a theater team. Trinity's drama program has meant I also have to act, stepping outside of my comfort zone. So I'm in the cast, but also work on costumes, sets, and props. Our program is little, but we have to make do. It's a great experience to have to problem-solve!

What is your favorite Trinity Academy tradition?

I love Lernvergnügentag. I especially love the sneak-up, when you get there in the morning and suspect what's happening, but don't want to let yourself believe it until it's announced! But my real favorites are the smaller, student-maintained traditions, like the Secret Santa exchange, or how the senior girls decorate the bathroom every year for Christmas.

What do you think makes Trinity distinctive?

Intentional friendship is one of the things that has made my Trinity experience valuable for me. I have seen my friends deciding to love each other and rely on each other as a support system and as educational partners – talking about our HL books outside of class or discussing philosophy. I'm very passionate about Trinity and I spend a lot of time talking to people about it! A thousand things make it unique. I'm so grateful for the community.

What is next for you, and what do you hope it will be like?

I've enrolled in John Paul the Great University in southern California. It's a very small film and business school. All the students make a feature film as their final project, so I'm hoping to get a lot of first-hand experience in filmmaking and production design.

What is a first memory of Trinity Academy?

I started in 6th grade. But my parents knew about it by the time I was 8. My mom met with Dr. Clark and knew it was the school she wanted to send me to. At the time I went to St. Stephen's Academy, so I had already been introduced to some aspects of classical education—I'd been doing Latin since early elementary school.

How was the transition to middle school?

I've always been very chatty with adults. I remember giving people the whole spiel about Trinity and how "it's discussion-based! It fits my skill set!" I would talk about how all the teachers had specialized knowledge of the subject they were teaching, and were passionate about teaching and learning.

As you knew in 6th grade, you have some good verbal skills! What have been some good experiences in HL?

The emphasis on original texts is really special. Humane Letters in 9th grade is a good example: reading political theory and the actual documents related to the founding of our country is something that should be integral to our education. I love to find connections within a text and across texts and other classes. As you read along in the curriculum or even outside of it, you start to see these layers of a kind of literary genealogy. You learn how to be on the lookout for that. And I value being able to discuss things in an intelligent way.

I remember you all having a theological conversation once—outside of class time—and I felt a little wary about whether that would go okay. One of you reassured me, "Don't worry, we know how to talk about things like this."

Yeah! That skill is part of what makes a Trinity education so distinctive. And it applies to all our classes: being able to defend our opinions and treat conversation partners well. It's especially important to be able to ask, when someone offers their response, "Okay, what do you really mean by that?" It gives value to their thoughts, instead of dismissively moving on without inquiring further, thinking, "Fine, we'll let someone who knows what they're talking about speak."

What have been some challenges?

Going to a school that expects a lot out of you in each class fits with a philosophy of the liberal arts in which you invest yourself in subjects that don't come naturally to you. I'm still working on that in certain classes. There are moments where you realize you could just put something down or keep leaning into it. Even if my best doesn’t look the same as other people’s, I want to be proud of what I can do. The physics we've been doing recently has come a little closer to my wheelhouse. Mr. Tomassi teased me the other week because I said, "I love HL Physics!" We were reading Einstein and practicing putting his ideas into our own words.

What do you think makes Trinity distinctive?

It's pretty amazing when I think about how students are always hanging around after events to clean up. Or the expectation that we become comfortable talking to adults, whether volunteering as a student ambassador, or just more casually. I'm not sure that happens in the same way at other schools.

What is your favorite Trinity Academy tradition?

It's not a specific memory, but more of a favorite time that feels sweet: when the whole school is outside on a sunny day at long lunch, around April, and the cherry trees are blooming. When I was a middle schooler, I loved that the high schoolers would come back with their lunches and play with us. One time there was a big water balloon fight, when all the younger kids joined in with the seniors... I remember thinking, you couldn't have this at a bigger school. It gave me a sense of what a rare community Trinity is.

What's next for you, and what do you hope it will be like?

I'll be studying psychology at Wheaton College in Illinois. I hope I'll be able to be of use to God somehow in that way, listening to other people. I'm thinking about some ideas having to do with service or non-profit work.

ALAN HICKERSON

What is a first memory of Trinity Academy?

It was the fall Open House. It was dark and rainy. I was in 6th grade. I walked in and didn't even get to fully turn my head when, boom! There was Nico di Piazza. "Hello! Welcome to Trinity! What's your name?" He was a 7th grade student ambassador and very determined to do the job. I also remember how much there was to do and look at.

What are some good experiences from being involved in extracurriculars?

My first extracurricular was TACO. I met Mr. Fotinakis at the ice cream social, and talked with him about whether I could play with the new strings group he wanted to start up. I was a very driven violinist at that time; I spent a lot of hours in the practice room and thought I was going to go to Julliard and be a soloist someday. It felt big and exciting to be with the older students, and I remember how welcoming they all were of me. I've continued with private lessons on violin, and my musical development at Trinity also helped me get the teacher I currently have, who is amazing. I was also in the Metropolitan Youth Symphony until junior year and concert-mastered there for a couple terms. I started taekwondo in 2nd grade and got my black belt last year. I also helped Tennis Club become a team sport at Trinity.

What is your favorite Trinity Academy tradition?

In middle school, it was Tree-to-Tree. Climb in the trees and do fun zip-line courses?! I thought it was incredible. Now, it's probably Lernvergnügentag. I even wish we did it more than once a year. It's cool to get to see the passion teachers have for such a variety of things, and each of them is interesting! It's yummy, it enriches your mind, it makes you want to try new things at home... it's great.

Have you had any big changes to your perspective since starting at Trinity?

I'm less intimidated by challenging things. Sometimes, walking into a room and seeing the math left up on the board, I felt like it was abstract art. Now, when I visit a college math class or a similar scenario, even though there are things I haven't learned yet, I feel more comfortable about my ability to piece it together. With time and practice having people help to guide me through the initial process of learning, I've realized I can do it. Another way I've noticed growth is how I learned to be more open in pursuing friendships with other students, younger ones, too. I noticed how the students who were older than me behaved toward us, and I tried to be purposeful in doing that myself.

What have been some challenges you’ve overcome?

It was a pretty shocking change coming here from public school. There, you could say anything and participate in any way, and be praised for it. Now, I have to really think. Particularly in HL, I can't just say anything. It has to be rooted in the text and I have to be able to say it in a way that's credible or convincing. That's a challenge, but I like working hard at it. I see how much more deeply I engage with the material.

What has been your favorite book in Humane Letters?

Augustine's Confessions was very good and very relatable. I like the way it incorporates philosophical ideas into narrative. I appreciated that even more once we got to Dante and The Brothers Karamazov. I think I understand philosophy best in the context of characters and their lives.

What's next for you, and what do you hope it will be like?

I'm going to the University of San Diego. I want to get a degree in business and entrepreneurship, with music as a minor. Then I'd like to build my woodworking business that I've run out of my garage since freshman year. I make custom furniture and kitchenware and other things. I am building a violin right now, so it would really be fun to have a violin shop.

Thank you, Class of 2024! 

We are so excited to watch you flourish in this next stage of life. We pray for God's blessing upon you as you venture onward to be the men and women He has called you to be!

– the faculty and staff of Trinity Academy

Stay tuned tomorrow for more interviews with the Trinity Academy Class of 2024!