Ariuka Purev-Chang

This summer, junior Ariuka Purev-Chang will fill a paid position in an independent architecture firm operated by architect and Burlingame parent Andrea Van Voorhis.

“It’ll really just be a secretary; it’s just to see what architects do. So, I’d be like running around like getting coffee or filing papers, but it’s more like to be in the firm, seeing how people work,” Purev-Chang said.

Initially, Purev-Chang struggled to find a position that didn’t require him to live in

Isaac Tsai

Since last year, his sophomore year of high school, junior Isaac Tsai has been fascinated by the topological quantum matter theory. After frequently talking with former chemistry teacher, Jeff Cole, about electrons and wave particle duality, he soon further pursued his passion by joining the Aspiring Scholars Directed Research Program last summer. He plans to continue to take advantage of this opportunity throughout this coming summer.

“My research mostly surrounded quantum entanglement and quantum commut- ing specifically,” Tsai said. “This theory is based on the properties of quantum mechanics, and the laws surrounding it.”

Aside from his directed quantum mechanics research, Tsai is also considering a summer internship under Dr. Kalev at University of Santa Barbara (UCSB).

“Over the summer, I may also plan to do some research at UCSB,” Tsai said. “I’d mainly be doing research in their quantum lab on topical quantum matter, it’s such a cool opportunity.”

Lily Grenier

Over the summer, junior Lily Grenier will attempt to get her private pilot’s license, turning her dreams of being a pilot into reality.

“I was traveling so much because of travel softball, and I was flying every month and I literally had an epiphany on a plane as we were taking off, like ‘Why can’t I just do this myself?’” Grenier said.

Grenier will be committing a significant amount of hours to better understand flying and the aircraft that she will be using.

San Francisco. It was actually Burlingame’s own architecture teacher — Anna Liu — that pointed him to Van Voorhis.

While he won’t start working until later in the summer, Purev-Chang already has a good idea of what he wants to get out of this experience.

“Understanding what the work environment is like, what the people do and just kind of like improving my skills as an architect,” Purev-Chang said.

Ella McHenry

With over nine weeks of summer break, students have the opportunity to squeeze in experiences of a lifetime. Sophomore Ella McHenry will go to Costa Rica for three weeks with a non-profit organization called Amigos.

“I’d like to save the planet when I’m older. So on this trip, I’m going to three small different cities and I’m learning about how climate change affects agriculture in Costa Rica, and this will help me figure out what field I want to be in,” McHenry said.

“I am going to get my private pilot’s license through Carlos Flight Center. And hopefully I’ll have completed that halfway through summer,” Grenier said.

Grenier is mainly interested in flying as a future career.

“I cannot see myself sitting behind a desk. I’m so interested in just experiencing life, but also being able to make a living, so flight seemed like a great option,” Grenier said.

Although McHenry was originally worried about her lack of experience, she hopes to use the trip as a way to learn more about culture and life away from home.

“People need to experience what life is like outside of the city that they’re living in. Staying with the host family in a small village, speaking another language is going to be really beneficial,” McHenry said.