Shady Side Academy
Senior? Yes
Elite top 100? Yes
Letters of recommendation: Letter of Recommendation 1, Letter of Recommendation 2
I always laugh looking back at it. The guy who had been elected Junior Class President and tasked with running the school Prom had never actually been to a high school dance himself. That was me the May of my sophomore year.
But organizing and planning the event was not the main task of my job. Much more pressing was figuring out how to finance a Prom that typically costs $25,000.
It was one of the toughest projects I had ever undertaken, but I couldn’t let my classmates down. Working with both my faculty adviser and leading the “Prom Committee,” I spent countless hours on everything from hiring a DJ to working on time-consuming fundraisers, even designing and selling customized sweaters—quite a list of adventures for someone who wears button downs and khakis every day.
But, in the end, all the time spent was definitely worth it. The dance was not only well-enjoyed by students, but the tickets were also sold at their lowest prices in at least twelve years. The real payoff though was that more people could actually afford and thus attend the event, further strengthening and building community, and my time as Junior Class President was always about putting the priorities and needs of my friends, my classmates, and my school above my own. That’s why I loved to spend time working to create a spectacular Prom even though I lacked particular interest in the event myself: I knew it was something that mattered to the student body. Maybe I don’t like school dances and haven’t been to one since, but I do know that if my community aspires towards something, I will give it no less than my all. Not everyone can say that.
Contrasting with the norms of an increasingly self-centered society, my time as Class President, albeit insignificant to the outsider viewer, enabled me to reflect and refine my conceptions of volunteerism by understanding that leadership is not about being served but serving others, about humbling and committing oneself to a greater need, even if that’s as trivial as a school dance. With so much to be done, big and small, in the community, it’s easy to disconnect, to throw my hands in the air. But whenever I find myself called to face such a task, my response can be and is nothing but the opposite; that’s because my work has not been about building a résumé but because I thoroughly enjoy devoting my abilities to serve a purpose and goal larger than myself.
Years from now, I won’t remember what the flowers look like, what we served for dinner, or how much the tickets cost, but I will always remember this from my experience organizing Prom wherever life takes me: the pleasures of living for oneself are fleeting. We are beckoned towards a greater purpose and a greater mission that encompasses our entire lives. Being blessed with the opportunities I have been given, how can I not answer the call?