Background Checks

By Angela Small and Olivia Guffey

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All About the 2019 Scholars!

A random sample of scholars were asked to answer a few questions:

a. What city and high school are you from?

b. What is it like growing up in the community you’re from?

c. Why did you want to come to MSA?

Aditya Chandu- Chesterfield (a St. Louis suburb), Metro High School

Though Aditya lives in Chesterfield, he spends a great deal of his time in St. Louis City, which is where his school is. He loves the city because it’s never boring; there’s always something to do nearby, no matter where in the city one is. Aditya decided to attend MSA because it seemed like an intriguing opportunity to be away from home; the competitive application process also made him excited to go.

Anna Hoffman- Raytown (a suburb near Kansas City), Southwest High School

Anna loves that her suburb is diverse, which means she gets exposure to a wide variety of cultures and ideas. Though Anna was initially hesitant to go to msa, she decided to go because her counselor pushed her to make it a part of her resume. She is now very grateful that she decided to go.

Austin Terry- Owensville, Owensville High School

In Austin’s area, there is a great deal of farming. His town is also plentiful in school spirit, as almost every business has his school’s colors hanging up somewhere on its building. Austin wanted to go to MSA to experience being in high functioning groups that motivate him to challenge himself.

Aya Amirdash- Hannibal, Hannibal High School

Aya’s favorite part about her town is its quality coffee shop. Her school, on the other hand, has some downfalls. Firstly, there aren’t a great deal of gifted kids. Additionally, the small school size makes it harder to make new friends. Aya decided to go to MSA because she wanted to seek out new opportunities while having fun.

Ben Sommer- Warrenton, Warrenton High School

Ben’s community is a very non-diverse, rural area. The town is small, with only one high school. Being at MSA has been eye-opening for Ben because he is surrounded by ample amounts of new, diverse people. After getting accepted into MSA, Ben was on the edge until his mom pushed him to attend. Since being here, however, Ben does not regret his decision.

Hannah Rowland- O’Fallon (a suburb near St. Louis), Zumwalt West

Hannah’s town is “very suburban”; living in this environment is odd because her suburb isn’t quite a city, but also is not small enough to be considered a small town. Hannah wanted to do MSA because she thinks it’s a unique opportunity to meet people that are like her, and make new friends. She also is excited to take classes she’s never gotten to take before, and gain new experiences.

Harbor Wolff- St Louis, Crossroads College Prep

Harbor grew up in an extremely diverse community. Race and sexual orientation diversification were only two of the factors that helped Harbor avoid isolation in his community. With all of the diversity, he has gotten to see endless experiences and cultures. Although Harbor may have originally came to MSA because of his parents, now that he is here, he has no regrets. The environment, people, and activities have helped him learn a lot and reach out from St. Louis.

Rani Patel- Jefferson City, Jefferson City School

Rani has grown to appreciate living in Jefferson City as she’s gotten older. Since it’s the state capital, it has unique locations such as the capital building, courthouses, and the governor’s garden, which make her love her city. She also finds that it’s the perfect size, in that it’s a city, but still not too big. Rani decided to attend MSA because some of her role models went there, and inspired her to do so as well. One of these role models is her current RA, Catherine Blotevogel.

Shruti Gautam- Columbia, Rock Bridge High School

Shruti enjoys living in Columbia, because it provides her with unique opportunities. She also says that it’s nice in that it’s a small-ish town, but it still has an urban atmosphere. Shruti decided to go to MSA because she knows former scholars who attended it, and they told her that it truly is a life-changing experience.