Mathematics
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Skyline High School
Parents: Joe and Jane Carter
Salt Lake City
"As long as I can remember, I have tried to organize the world into patterns. I love creating and then executing them. This quirky obsession makes me play every key on the piano in a certain order before I can begin to practice or count steps from the parking lot to my classes. I could probably tell you how many steps you have to take between every classroom at Skyline High. This innate need to patterns can entertain me for hours. Whether it is stacking coins like the Eiffel Tower, drawing thousands of tiny spirals on my history assignment or counting the vowels in my English essay, it always takes priority over my homework. My obsession isn't restricted to one or two areas; rather anything that can be ordered or quantified becomes my medium. Because of this my universe is limitless — patterns can be found in everything. This is my window into any subject matter I might undertake.
"While I have loved every math class I have taken, calculus has been the most gratifying. It was the first math class that really brought everything together — all the stuff I had learned back from algebra and geometry was finally paying off. Being able to understand the theory and the process rather than just memorizing the concepts has always been very rewarding for me.
"Mathematics will open a multitude of doors for me in my future; its applications are endless."
Whether I am a hydrologist designing a system to provide clean water to a small village in Africa or a mechanical engineer perfect a car that runs off a clean energy, I hope that I can use my skill to make a positive impact on the world."
SCHOLARSHIP: Ranks first out of 480; overall GPA is 4.0; 34 composite ACT.
AWARDS AND PROJECTS: National Honor Society treasurer; Operation Smile Serve chairperson; Choice Humanitarian trip to Kenya; Spanish Club vice president; Skyline Environmental Team; track and cross country teams; Siemens Award for AP Math and Science — first in state; American Regions Mathematics League Competition; Skyline Math Team; math tutoring and coaching; National Merit Semifinalist; AP Scholar with Distinction; Debate Academic Letter Award; Presidents Award for Outstanding Academic Excellence; Wasatch Peer Leadership Team and volunteer for Utah Food Bank.