Macjournalism

This fall, senior Ashton Ward will be attending the University of Texas at Austin, where they plan to double major in aerospace engineering and Plan II Honors. They were drawn to UT for its unique balance of rigorous technical education and interdisciplinary learning.

“I chose UT because it has both an amazing engineering program and the Plan II honors program,” Ward said. “I really wanted the experience of a liberal arts school that has small discussion classes, while still having access to the resources and engineering courses of a large research university.”

Ward looks forward to continuing an education that blends multiple interests while preparing for a future in engineering.

“It’s really important to me that I can continue having an interdisciplinary education while still pursuing the specific career I’m interested in,” Ward said.

Throughout high school, Ward has been deeply involved in both academics and the arts. As an orchestra major in the Fine Arts Academy, they found a strong sense of community through music.

“Being in orchestra has given me a community of thoughtful, hard-working and talented people that I’m lucky to know and get to play music with,” Ward said. “I’m so grateful to have been taught by Mr. Pringle and Ms. Elder.”

Ward began playing the violin at a young age, and their experience in orchestra became a defining part of their high school years.

“I started playing violin when I was around 5 years old,” Ward said. “Although I won’t continue playing violin professionally, music will still continue to be a big part of my life and the memories I have made in orchestra will stick with me.”

In addition to their involvement in the arts, Ward has made a strong impact academically. They serve as an officer in both Science National Honor Society and Japanese National Honor Society, are a National Merit Finalist, a member of National Honor Society and a lead tutor at the math center.

Despite their many accomplishments, Ward values the everyday moments the most.

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Senior Charlotte Cross will be attending University of Tampa in the fall, where she will major in criminology. Cross chose this major, due to her interest in crime documentaries, which have fascinated her since she was young. However, Cross is keeping her mind open to other majors at Tampa in case she decides to switch to something more in the medical field.

“I’ve always been very interested in the psychology behind criminal behavior, so I wanted to start out by majoring in criminology,” Cross said. “I’m also considering majoring in nursing as well, since Tampa is known to have a good nursing program.”

Cross said that a big reason she chose Tampa was due to its proximity to the beach, where she looks forward to spending her free time aside from school. Cross also was looking for a smaller school where she could find smaller lectures and less chaotic environments.

“Tampa has a smaller and beautiful campus that’s right on the river bay and twenty minutes from the beach,” Cross said, “I’ve always really loved the beach and wanted to be near one during college.”

Cross thinks that her AP United States History class was a class that will prepare her well for college, due to the heavy course load and learning she did on her own. One thing she will miss about McCallum is the sense of community she’s found in the volleyball program, as well as seeing all of her friends everyday.

“The thing I’ll miss most about McCallum are my friends and the community,” Cross said. “I’m really going to miss the volleyball team and playing with all of my best friends.”

Caption by Sienna Martens. Photo courtesy of Charlotte Cross.