Alumni Profile: Atesh Worthington, Class of 2005
What did you enjoy most about your time at EB and why? I feel so fortunate to have grown up in the nurturing, supportive and stimulating environment that is EB. It is hard to pinpoint just one thing I enjoyed the most since there are so many aspects of my time there that I loved while I was there and ones that I have come to appreciate as I experienced the world outside of those walls. Please describe your current work/studies. I am a Ph.D. candidate at UC Santa Cruz where I study how fetal blood stem cells regenerate to better understand pediatric leukemias and potentially improve bone marrow transplantation therapies. How do you feel EB has influenced you or led you towards your choice of profession?
“I gained the intellectual and emotional tools to thrive beyond the comforts of my known world. EB sowed the seeds of resilience in me, and it is that resilience that I continue to rely on…” 36
My love of science and the scientific method were first developed and fostered by the incredible science and math teachers I had throughout my time at EB! They gave me the confidence to take advanced science and math classes in high school which was integral to building my STEM identity and pursuing a degree in science! And my experience in their classrooms has inspired me to pursue a career in both research and teaching! What would you say to parents just starting out at EB? EB provides not just an outstanding education for you children, it is a second home for them as they learn how to navigate the world. As parents, you also gain a home with the other parents and a social network that also lasts beyond your years at EB. Some of my parents’ closest friends were also made in the narrow hallways and on the playgrounds of EB.
Describe your favorite memory from EB. Some of my favorite memories at EB are during the many overnight field trips we took, from the Marin Headlands, to Yosemite and France! These trips solidified my curiosity in the world outside the classroom and have inspired life-long friendships! I am actually still in touch with my correspondent from 8th grade and I visited her a couple of years ago when I was in Paris. Do you feel that EB adequately prepared you for life after EB? Do you feel you are a citizen of the world? I gained the intellectual and emotional tools to thrive beyond the comforts of my known world. EB sowed the seeds of resilience in me, and it is that resilience that I continue to rely on while living through a global pandemic, evacuation from wildfires and the countless curveballs life throws at us. I credit a lot my success to EB and do feel that I am citizen of the world! Would you consider sending your children to EB? Why? I would, without a doubt, send my children to EB! The bilingual education is second to none and foundational knowledge and skills children learn make them set up to thrive and be successful in whatever direction life takes them. Anything else you’d like to add? I still feel very connected to EB! A more recent memory that I cherish is being invited to give a talk at the TEDx Youth@EB event last year, seeing the many bright and excited faces in the audience and reconnected with the very teachers that inspired my pursuit of science.
