Alumni Feature

READY FOR TAKEOFF

ZANDER HAMILTON ’23 first became interested in flying because of the incredibly technologically advanced machines. His interest was rewarded last year when Zander earned a slot as a cadet in the Red-Tailed Hawks Youth FLY Program (RTH).

The RTH FLY Program is a two-week program introducing underrepresented youth to the world of aviation. RTH hosts the FLY program at Galvin Flying in Seattle, where cadets receive 10-12 fl ight hours and 40 hours of pilot ground school. Top performers are selected to continue past the solo fl ying level and earn private pilot certification.

Zander said he invested a lot of time studying during the summer program as a large volume of content is loaded into the 14-days. “Not only did we have to learn it all, but we had to retain all that information and skill as well. I had to make sure that I understood what was being taught and could continue to apply it, whether in actual scenarios or for quizzes and a knowledge test,” Zander said.

There were eight students in this year’s group of cadets and Zandar was honored to win the Top Gun Award, which provides additional support and funding for pilot training. Zander demonstrated his commitment to go above and beyond to complete the training with excellence to earn the award.

“I love aviation, and I aspire to be a professional some years from now. I hope to join the U.S. Air Force Academy, become a pilot (preferably fi ghters) and receive additional training. Once I grow tired of that, maybe I’ll join an airline until I retire.”

ALEX SZRAMA ’23 found that she immediately loved the adventure and freedom of fl ying after her dad, who holds a private pilot’s license, arranged an introductory fl ight for her. She joined the Civil Air Patrol when she was in the seventh grade, and through that experience, has fl own orientation fl ights and learned about aerospace and aviation.

Recognizing the high cost of fl ight training required for a pilot’s license, Alex applied for and was awarded a 2021 Continuing Aviation Grant and Private Pilot Ground School scholarship from Cascade Warbirds earlier this year.

The scholarship program offers the Continuing Aviation Education Grant to one scholarship recipient who intends to earn their FAA private pilot certificate within the following year. Applicants must complete the ground school course, both introductory flights and submit an essay.

“Thanks to the opportunity given to me by Cascade Warbirds, my next goal is to continue fl ight instruction, fl y solo and receive my private pilot license. My future goal,” Alex said, “is to be accepted into the U.S. Air Force Academy and become a military pilot.”

For younger students who are interested in aviation, Alex offered this advice, “I’d encourage anyone interested in aviation to join the Civil Air Patrol where you can explore different aspects of aviation and space fl ight and experience the excitement of piloting a small aircraft.”

AP Perfection

Sharon Huang earned a rare perfect score on the college-level Advanced Placement® (AP) Research exam in spring 2021. Not only did she receive the top score of 5 but was also one of only 375 students in the world to earn every point possible on the AP Research exam, receiving the maximum score on each portion of the exam.

AP Research allows students to deeply explore an academic topic, problem or issue of individual interest. Through this exploration, students design, plan and conduct a year-long research-based investigation to address their area of interest. The course culminates in an academic paper of 4,000-5,000 words and a presentation with an oral defense. Students must complete the year-long AP Seminar course before enrolling in AP Research. “Sharon’s accomplishment on the AP Research exam is nothing short of extraordinary,” High School Principal Ryan Aiello said.

Sharon’s academic paper for AP Research was titled “The Association Between Sports, Body Image, and Eating Disorders of Male Teens at Eastside Catholic” and was accepted for publication in the Journal of Student Research.

Sharon’s project ran into some roadblocks along the way when she reached out to more than 20 King County

schools for survey participation, but none responded. She was able to pivot and adjust her research plan to focus on only EC students which allowed her to uncover statistically signifi cant results.

Her key fi ndings highlighted male adolescent students who play aesthetic sports such as dance, gymnastics, cheerleading, and fi gure skating show a signifi cant increase in the probability of having severe body image issues. She also found that student-athletes who play strength sports such as American football, weightlifting and wrestling show greater susceptibility to body image issues and elevated ED risks than average students, though less severe than aesthetic athletes.

Through her experience, Sharon shared, “ Being able to discover a problem, make recommendations towards a solution and potentially infl uence others positively in my community through this research study made me feel needed, important and included. Words cannot describe my overfl owing appreciation for the AP Research class, without which I would not have tried to engage in real-world problems or phenomena and make a difference.”