What was your educational path after graduating from St. Mary School?
After SMS, I attended Jonathan Law High School where I graduated number 8 in the class and captained the Cross Country team as well as co-captained the Girl’s Basketball team. I received the “Iron Man” award my senior year for participating in a sport every season all 4 years of high school. I also received a nursing scholarship which applied to my chosen major at the University of Connecticut, where I graduated from the Nursing school in 2012. Soon after graduation, I took the NCLEX and received my license as an RN in the state of Connecticut.
How do you feel SMS prepared you academically?
I feel that SMS always placed an important emphasis on reading and writing as well as reading comprehension. I still remember some of the poems and short stories that Mrs. Richards would have us analyze and I think this became a skill that I never forgot. I used this often in later academic courses/challenges.
Do you feel SMS provided you with a foundation for your future?
I think that when I attended SMS there were several special teachers who helped me to love learning, reading, and being creative. Their ways of teaching have helped shape who and where I am today and for that I thank them.
What are some of your favorite memories of SMS?
My favorite memories of SMS will probably always be competing in the basketball tournament every year, but I also remember in Kindergarten we raised butterflies and then released them outside of the church and I loved that. I also was a member of Natural Helpers which was a lot of fun; we went on a few trips and it was just an overall nice group of kids to be around.
What are your plans for the future?
At this point, I am happily adjusting to school nursing so that is my focus right now, but at some point in the future I would love to write a novel as well as travel to Ireland.
What advice can you give to our students?
As you grow up, you will often face both big and small changes and my advice to SMS students is to try and embrace these changes rather than resist them, because otherwise you may miss out on some great opportunities or just general happiness. It’s not easy to accept changes sometimes, I know, but if and when you do, you may discover a strength within yourself that you never knew you had before. My other advice would be to be kind to the people you meet. You never know what someone may be going through and your kindness can make all of the difference in the world.
