Meet the Class of 2015
To commemorate the departing Class of 2015, the Pigeon Press has interviewed each one of the students about where they have been, what they will take away from Northwest Academy and what is in store for them in the future.
Leah Carnahan-McGinley
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I have been here since the beginning of 8th grade.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy?
I don’t think I can pick a favorite class; there have been so many different classes that have been important and that have been really fun. I really like Heidi’s photography class and the after hours dance class, as well as the advanced dance class. And the English classes, and I really liked Andy’s class.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to school in Pennsylvania; I’m going to Dickinson. I’m going to college!
Who’s your celebrity crush?
I really like Emma Watson and then the guy from Love, Rosie, I think his name is Sam Claflin or something. And then Douglas Booth. They’re all English.
What will you miss the most about Portland?
The food! I’m going to miss going to the food carts and being downtown. I’m going to a really small town in Pennsylvania and the food is going to be very different. And I’m going to miss the nature of Oregon.
Tell a memorable Northwest Academy story.
I guess that I really enjoyed the lunch outs. I guess like getting to have that experience and getting time to just do whatever we wanted. We’ve had some really good times going to get sushi, and shopping, and taking the street car, and trying to figure out like time management for lunch outs, so that’s been really fun.
What’s your favorite book that you’ve read at Northwest Academy?
I have no idea. I think in 8th grade, or maybe it was freshman year, we read Things Fall Apart, and I didn’t really like it at the time, but like, looking back, that’s a book that I definitely remember reading more than any of the other ones. I also really liked, this is going to sound really funny, but junior year, when we read Howard Zinn’s People’s History of the United States, and I actually really liked it. Like, not for long periods of time, but I did enjoy it.
What are your senior thesis topics?
My fall semester was an exploration of childhood fascinations, specifically with childhood heroines, like Disney princesses and characters and stuff. This spring one is looking at child abuse through history and through the humanities.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff encounter?
Oh, well in 8th grade I got in really big trouble and I had to talk to Wagstaff. But I feel like Wagstaff, in 8th grade, handled it really well. Like I wasn’t scared of him, but I also felt like “I’m not going to do something like that again.”
Describe your first day at Northwest Academy.
I remember being really scared and wanting to have had high-heeled boots, but my mom wouldn’t buy me high-heeled boots. I remember walking in and there was a group of girls wearing high-heeled boots and I was like, “see mom, you should’ve gotten those for me.” But I remember I was the only new student and everyone was just like really nice and interested and asked me all these questions and I felt really happy and like it was good place for me to be. Like I didn’t feel scared. Like I felt scared when I was walking into the room, but after that I felt excited.
Elayna Caron
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
This is my second year at Northwest Academy.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
Oh, I know this one very well. So, I was wearing an American Apparel skirt, it was floral, and Birkenstocks, typical. And I was wearing the shirt that I’m wearing now! A white crop top. I got here, I was really nervous, I found Molly (Meier) and I gave her a big hug. I had, like, so many butterflies. Then we walked over to the church and they said a bunch of stuff and I was so nervous, my hands were so sweaty. And then I don’t really remember the rest. We probably went to Elephants for lunch, but I was excited.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
We read Slaughterhouse Five, which is one of my favorite books.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Molly Meier.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
When he called me into this office last year, at the end of the year and he called me, “Willow” and like I had talked to him numerous times, just casually. And then the time when he like, was wearing a skull shirt and was saying weird things about death and it was weird, but he’s a character.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
That’s hard… Probably painting because Sean Cain is the coolest person ever, besides Julia (Cain), actually they’re equally cool. But I think I found my medium with it and what I like to do and what I want to do.
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first one was about Jewish identity and like what it means to have a Jewish identity. And my second one is about the history of female comedians and how they have supported feminism.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to the University of Puget Sound to hopefully major in art/art history and minor in education.
What will you miss about Portland?
Molly Meier. The Rose Garden. The food! No sales tax. My friends. My cats. Just like the beauty of the PNW, but I’ll still be in the PNW.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
Honestly just spending time with the fab four, which is me and my three closest friends. I can’t pick a certain instance because I’ll probably start crying but, just getting down with it and hanging out. And also, I think Doug (Cornett’s) question mark days were probably some of my favorite days at Northwest Academy.
Ian Cummings
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I’ve been at Northwest Academy since 7th grade.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
I probably just clung onto my best friend, Alex Ramiller, the whole time. I remember when I first came here, I was extremely nervous and just uncomfortable socially, basically I just kind of sat in a corner until my classes and followed people around. I’m sure I was just very nervous and confused about what homework was like, as I was coming from a Montessori school.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
The Stranger by Camus. After that, it would be The Grapes of Wrath and Records of the Life of Jesus.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Can it be a man? Freaking Hugh Jackman, definitely. Also, a young Hugh Laurie. And in terms of women, I don’t know, Blake Lively is pretty attractive. I think she’s the only actress out there.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
I’ll go with the weird one. So, last year I was in study hall and I was talking to Connor Johnson about what his thesis proposal was about and it was about avant-garde music. So, he was talking about Frank Zappa, as well as Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band. Wagstaff was, kind of like, lingering in the entry way and I said something to the effect of, “Oh, I’m so sorry you have to focus so much on Captain Beefheart because, you know, I hate their music.” And then Wagstaff was like, “Okay, wait, hold on a second, I need to see you in my office.” He basically takes me back to his office and tries to convince me to like them. He also tells me that he knows the person that played guitar in that band, and that the guitar player, just the style of music, sounded awful. So he talked a little bit about that. And then he played me a little bit of the avant-garde music that he had recorded from his computer. I think Wagstaff is an incredible songwriter, I actually want to have all of his recordings, but these ones were just really strange. So, he basically took away a whole study hall talking to me about avant-garde music.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
My favorite class I’ve taken at Northwest Academy was the English/Humanities I course, mainly because it was instrumental in my development as an accepting human being. So, when I went into that class I was extremely cynical about religion and really just had no respect for it in any capacity. Through studying the Dhammapada, the Tao and the Qur’an and Jesus actually, I was able to gain a greater respect for people who have those religions as a part of their lives. And also, I just think religion is fascinating. Aside from that, my essay writing just grew tremendously.
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first one is about the Beatles’ portrayal of love in their music. So, I got to study different subtypes of love as categorized by this Canadian psychologist and relate them to Beatles songs, which was great fun for me because I was in the midst of a lengthy Beatles kick. And this semester, my thesis topic is about the challenges that modern media faces in ensuring that the news we receive is of the best quality.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to be attending Macalester College next year, unless I get into Stanford, off the waitlist, but there’s practically no chance of that. So, I’ll be taking a lot of different courses that I’m interested in. I’ve been thoroughly confused about what I want to study, thanks to Northwest Academy, which is a wonderful thing in my mind.
What will you miss about Portland?
Well, luckily for me, St. Paul and Minneapolis, the Twin Cities, are pretty similar culturally and also somewhat architecturally to Portland. So, probably the weather. I really love Portland weather. It’s a great temperature, I like the occasional rain, I also like that our winters don’t get to around zero, so that will probably suck, but I’ll deal with it.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
So, this is sometime freshman year. Luca Ponzi was still in our class. We had just completed a final essay, and we all start pulling out our essays because Julie tells us to and then Luca goes, “Wait, we had an essay due today?” and then Julie goes “Yeah, Luca. I’ve been telling you about this for weeks.” And he just goes “F*CK!”
Alex Hill
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I’m the longest running member of this year. Molly (Meier) has also been here, but she came like two weeks after me. I have been here for all of it, since sixth grade, and my brother came here before me.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
Ever? I don’t even remember the first time I came to this school. I don’t even remember the first day of sixth grade. High school first day was: I had seen Aaron Hollomon, who I had not seen in a long time and he thought I was so weird and he was kinda scared of me.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
I mean, who doesn’t love a little Camus, and Ironweed? I mean we see a lot of really good movies. Catcher In The Rye, like if I’m going back to middle school too, it has to be Catcher In The Rye, but that’s everyone favorite book, like I want to be cool, but that’s it.
Who is your celebrity crush?
My first ever celebrity crush was Vanessa Hudgens, which is significant, because she is my first ever love, like non-cartoon love. And then now, I like Amanda Seyfried and Anna Moore. There are so many more, but Amanda Seyfried, I want to marry her.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
I believe that he dated Oprah, he told me that and I believed him, and I still do. One time my parents told him that I bought a turntable, so he decided to give me his old band’s record. And I played it and there was a song where he says, “Move past the rings around Saturn, but never mind the rings around Uranus.” And I had to come to school the next day, and he asked me how I liked the record. Then recently, I was using one of those automatic staplers that just do it, and he walked by and he stopped and said, “Ahh man, aren’t those the coolest staplers ever, man?” He said “man” a lot and then he did a Bruce Lee punch and he said, “It’s like the Bruce Lee of staplers, it is so quick and precise.”
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
Orchestral music, freshman year. Ian Cummings was in that class, I mention him because he is the only one who is still here that was in that class. Am I wrong? Well, I also love the English classes, but everyone loves them.
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first one was… I’m trying to suggest a different way of contending in the social sphere based on emotional honesty instead of peer repression. It is really pretentious and I don’t believe a lot of it anymore, and the second one is fiction. The topic is just about transcendence. Like the theme of transcendence, in particular American Transcendence, with a capital A and T, in American music.
What are your plans for next year?
I have a contractual obligation to go to Kenyon College [of Ohio], which is fine because I like it there a lot, but I’m going to see what it is like, and if I like it I’ll stay and if I don’t I’ll leave. Either way I’m going to be making music.
What will you miss about Portland?
I don’t think I’ll miss anything, because I’ll come back so often. I don’t think I’ll miss Portland so much because of the memories. But that is like the past and does not matter. But I’ll come back to Portland all the time.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
My life is just an inside joke…
Aaron Hollomon
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I’ve been here for five years. I was here for 7th grade and then all of high school. Not 8th grade though, I was in California that year.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
In 7th grade, I was really shy. [I] only knew one person, and barely. That was really nerve wracking; it was the first day of middle school. Until, I met Molly Meier. And, I don’t really remember that.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Beyoncé. Do I need to explain? Because she’s got the voice of an angel.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
I’ve never been to Wagstaff’s office but making eye contact with him can be absolutely terrifying.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
Freshmen E/H and junior E/H. I love Julie (Ellington) and Doug. They are the most inspirational people I’ve ever met.
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first semester thesis was an analysis of gender roles in serial killers and The Silence of the Lambs. My second semester thesis is titled “The Rose That Grew From Concrete: An Analysis of South Central Los Angeles through its Greatest Poets.”
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to Chapman University located in Orange County, California. LA!
What will you miss about Portland?
The people? Sure, yeah, the people. The community, they don’t have that in California.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
The junior retreat was probably the funnest retreat. Molly gave me a scar at both the junior and senior retreats. On the first one, we tackled each other. The second one was when she pinched me while we were playing “Apples to Apples” and I told her it wasn’t her turn when it actually WAS NOT her turn. But, she still got really mad and pinched me.
Nadia Johnson
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
Four years.
Describe your first day at Northwest Academy?
I remember I already knew Claire Novick and I was coming into the grade with Safia Williams, who has been one of my best friends since kindergarten, and so I remember trying to stick close to those two, but still trying to be introduced to all the other people. I had met a few people before coming to the school, but it was kind of one of those days where you are in this weird, new world of high school and of course I got lost on my way to classes and established new friends. It was definitely an adventure.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
I think the one book I really got into was Frankenstein. That’s a classic. Before sophomore year, I had never really read it. I’d always known about it, of course, before Jada (Pierce’s) class. I think it’s a really compelling book, the story is too, and the whole historical context for it is just really, really great.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Theo James from [the film], Divergent. I haven’t even seen the movie, yet but he’s beautiful. He is stunning.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
Wagstaff for a while, he hasn’t done it a long time, but whenever I would sit up at the counter [in the commons], he would come up behind me and “taser” me. That’s what going behind someone’s back and surprising them by poking them in the sides is called. That basically happened every time I would do my homework. That was kinda funny. And, one time, I had to call his cell phone and I got his voice message service and it was the most hilarious thing I had ever heard.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
That’s really tough. That’s a really hard question. I’ve loved all English/Humanities classes for one reason or another. I think all the teachers who teach them are just brilliant. Then, also, the classes I’ve stuck with the longest are probably Black and White Photography and Drawing with Sean. I think the teachers are definitely a big part of what makes a class really good for me. I love Sean, I love all the English teachers. My freshman year, I took Writing on the Edge with Brian Christopher when he was still here.
What were your senior thesis topics?
I did my first one on romantic comedies and how those validate our idealistic and optimistic views on life and love. Then, my second thesis is looking at homemaking and the perspective of homemaking being an important role in society and art form. And, looking at that through [the brand] Betty Crocker. Homemaking as in providing a nourishing environment. I think a really good definition for a positive home was something like, “secure, safe, but still encourages all of its inhabitants to grow.” I’m basically doing it through Betty Crocker because just, on kind of a whim I found an article on Betty Crocker. She just has such a big influence on the stereotypical. I feel like the stereotypical 1950s housewife kind of comes from the Betty Crocker ideals. And, what I found very interesting about Betty Crocker was that she helped, back then, to transform the role of the homemaker into a more respected position, and now her ideals of homemaking aren’t exactly quite as respected anymore as women have gained more independence and homemaking doesn’t have as quite of as clear definition as it once did.
What are your plans for next year?
Next year, I will be taking a gap year. I just don’t feel like I’m quite ready for college yet so I’m going to be staying in Portland and working and developing my portfolio a bit more. Hopefully it will be more fashion designs, more drawing and photography.
What will you miss about Portland?
I’m going to be staying in Portland for the next year. But, one thing I think I’ve always loved about Portland is that the culture is really booming and as teenager in Portland at this moment it is fun to be a part of the culture. And, all the freshness of the trees. What I will miss about being a high schooler in Portland is feeling like I can just go out and have fun doing things. I feel like now, since I’ll be 19 in June, I’ll still be able to have fun, but not be able to have fun.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
I know I have a few. I think one of my favorite memories is on the sophomore retreat, when we went to Ashland back when that was still a thing but canceled for obvious reasons, I remember I was sharing a room with Aaron Hollomon and Alex Hill and we stayed up late that night watching “Friends,” and that was first time I had watched “Friends.” That was fun. Also, Doug had this one class that he taught, and we weren’t sure what we would be doing, so he basically taught us how to BS, and that was pretty hilarious. I think I’ll always have good memories of the people. Even though we all aren’t close, we are one big family. They are all important people to me.
Linnea Kelly
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I have been here since my sophomore year.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
I actually do remember my first day perfectly. It was September 5th, 2012. I was wearing a red V-neck, and a silk pastel skirt and gray leggings. I don’t remember what shoes I was wearing, that is the only hole in my memory. My first class was Wade (Willis’) Actors’ Workshop. The first thing he has us do was stand in a circle and make weird sounds and motions, which we do all the time in Actors’ Workshop anyway. That was my first impression of Northwest Academy. I also remember my first Jada Pierce class. I love Jada, she is the best. You learn so much from Jada. She made us use this spectrum, and you had to put things on it. I remember going up and doing that. That was fun.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
Candide is one of my favorite books of all time. I love Candide.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Oh. Do I have to choose just one? Daniel Radcliffe because I love him, also Bo Burnham and Emma Watson, why not?
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
Okay, when I first started going here Wagstaff tried to scare me once, like tried to jump scare me. No, he tried to make me think I was in trouble. It didn’t work. He said from then on that it was his mission to scare me within an inch of my life before I leave. So now he walks past me and says really ominous things like, “It’s going to happen soon, we just need the shipment from Africa,” or “The animals went a little crazy so it’ll be delayed a little bit.” So it hasn’t really happened yet, so we’ll see.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
Ahh! That’s hard. I’d say it has to be Project Theatre, just because it’s been kind of an integral part of my life since second semester of my sophomore year.
What were your senior thesis topics?
The first one was about rape culture in America, which is a pretty broad topic, but I ended up speaking a lot about the media specifically. This one I am even more proud of, although I was proud of the first one. It’s about sexual repression within the Catholic Church. Looking at it as a global health crisis.
What are your plans for next year?
I am going to Reed College to study psychology, and probably also writing. I am hoping to get an internship with Bitch Magazine.
What will you miss about Portland?
Right now I live with three college students, three current Reed students and my boyfriend. I am going to miss that a ton. Most of us are still going to be living in Portland, but we won’t be living with each other which is a bummer.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
My most memorable story was during a performance of Moon Over Buffalo during my sophomore year, when Claire Novick, another senior, had managed to misplace six mustaches. We were all just searching frantically for the mustaches. We couldn’t find them and Claire was crying backstage because Wade had yelled at her about the mustaches. This was during an actual performance, like this was in front of an audience. Molly Walker came out and she was supposed to wear a wig for that scene. When she came out I noticed that there were mustaches all over her wig, stuck in it. It was so hard not to break, it was the funniest thing.
Molly Meier
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I’m an OG [Original Gangster]. I have been here with Alex Hill since 6th grade, so I’ve been here seven years. But I came in two weeks late, so he has been here longer.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
Well, like I said I came in two weeks late. I met my best friend of all time, Vivian (Summers), that was the most memorable thing. I remember being really nervous and crying because I didn’t know anyone and everyone was really close knit and I was the new kid on the block.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
Either the Great Gatsby or Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or Catcher in the Rye. They were awesome.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Definitely Chris Evans, he is my one and only, but I also love Luke Bryan and Scott Eastwood and basically any all-American looking boy next door, especially if they have a Boston accent. Ben Affleck.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
I’ve only been sent to Wagstaff’s twice, both times were in middle school. The first time we actually got in trouble. It was me and Alex Hill and two kids who used to go here. And then the second time, this girl who I didn’t like cheated off my math final in 6th grade even though I got everything wrong.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
My favorite class, I have two, it is either Ancient Civilization with Sharon (Weir) in 6th grade because that class really sparked an interest in me, or Psychology with Jada this year. I was really excited to see the school was making academic electives.
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first semester thesis topic was about the evolution of the country music industry and my topic for this semester is about how the millennial generation doesn’t know how to date due to the rise of technology.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to the University of Oregon to study, I don’t really know (what) yet, maybe psychology, maybe environmental studies, maybe education, or communications or sports marketing. And I’m really excited because I like the Ducks and football.
What will you miss about Portland?
I think I’ll, of course, miss my family and my friends and my house and my dogs. And I’ll also miss knowing where everything is and being really acquainted with a place.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
I have so many because I’ve been here for seven years. But out of all the years I’ve been here, I think the junior retreat is one of the most memorable experiences and the senior retreat because they both were just really chill and it was a lot of classmate bonding time. Or, going to outdoor school as a counselor with my best friends.
Ilana Newman
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I’ve been here since 7th grade.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
I don’t remember. I remember coming into the Main Building. I had a blue backpack. I think I remember what I wore. I remember I was really tall. At the time, I was really tall, and everyone else hadn’t grown, and I had already grown. I haven’t grown since.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
It’s really hard to think back on all the books we’ve ever read. Honestly, Great Gatsby or the Tao. I love the Tao.
Who is your celebrity crush?
I don’t know. I need to find like the one. Like, the best one.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
All the English classes have been really amazing for different reasons. I really like Philosophy. Photography is always good.
What were your senior thesis topics?
The first one was a psychobiography of J.D. Salinger and the second one is about Winnie the Pooh and identity.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies at Western Washington University.
What will you miss about Portland?
The people, and just knowing everything and where everything is.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
The junior retreat was really fun. It was just really cool to be in the woods with everybody and just have fun. We didn’t do anything that retreat, we just hung out.
Claire Novick
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
Four and a half years.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
It was the middle of eighth grade. It was January 31st, I was terrified. I tried to jump out of the car when we were going over the bridge but my mom locked the car. I didn’t own any jeans that fit, because I just went through a growth spurt, so I was wearing these hideous stretch pants and a grey sweatshirt. And, I walked into the main building before Spanish, and it was so loud and I was really confused. Somebody said, “Oh, just follow Maya to Spanish class.” I ended up walking into the basement of the Buchan building and getting really lost. And, showing up 20 minutes late to English, and they sent out a search party for me. It was awful.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
I really really liked Empathy Exams. I also really liked Candide.
Who is your celebrity crush?
There are way too many for this, but One Direction, just all of them. Including Zayn. I’m in denial.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
One time, it was a week after freshman year, after school got out. I was at Fred Meyer’s, grocery shopping with my mom and I we see this bald guy looking at hair dryers. And I thought it was really funny. Then I was like, “Wait, that’s Wagstaff.” And my mom said, “Oh, go say something to him.” And I told her, “He probably does not know who I am.” “Oh no no no your school’s tiny.” And we go up to him and were like, “We just wanted to say hi.” And he looks at my mom and he looks at me and his face is totally blank, and he goes, “She’s grown so much.” I literally saw him a week before and he had no idea who I was. And then another time, I used to take the MAX to school, I saw him on the train and I got so distracted by him that I got on the wrong train and ended up in Beaverton.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
I mean I’ve taken dance every single year. So something is happening there. Thesis has been really fun. World History was a fun class.
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first senior thesis topic is about identity formation after death. So basically how post-mortem rituals, like the funeral, change the perception of a person after they have died. And the one I’m working on right now is basically talking about nerd identity and nerd culture.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to Knox College in Illinois. In Ginsberg, Illinois, in the middle of nowhere. Probably majoring in anthropology, sociology and minoring in creative writing.
What will you miss about Portland?
I’ve lived in the same house for my entire life, so not being in my bedroom is going to be really weird. And this is going to be really sappy, but I’m going to miss the school a lot and my class because we have gotten so close and it is this little family that kind of hates each other but also kind of loves each other.
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
This one time in freshman year when I tripped when I was walking across the crosswalk and I completely wiped out and Ben Saeks and Shane Evans came to help and were like, “Oh my God, are you okay?” And my face was red for an hour because I was so embarrassed. And that’s the only thing I can think of, it is not my most memorable story. Well, apparently it is because it is the only one I remembered.
Mckensi Payne
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
Four years.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
Oh god. I remember I hated this school for the first week. I remember the first day during lunch, I went to the park blocks, I sat next to that creepy Abraham Lincoln statue. I heard people talking about getting pudding from Safeway. I was like what? You can just wander around? That was pretty much the only memory I had from the first day. My mom basically forced me to go to Northwest Academy. I am glad I did now, but I was really pissed, so I was just an angry young child for the first week of freshman year.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
Frankenstein, because it was good. Mary Shelley knows what she is talking about, so yeah. It’s a good book.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Alright, I got Rihanna, because have you see her? Beyoncé. They are pretty much all females because, wait no, Harry Styles, have you seen him?
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
I think he is my number one fan. You’re putting me on the spot. I don’t know. There are lots. Well I remember him, the two times I got in trouble at school, taking me into his office and being really scary. If you get in trouble he will write everything down in his little notepad. The notepad sucks.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
That’s a difficult one. Well probably health class, which was this year. Health was fun because we got to go in the back of an ambulance, we got to do all kinds of things.
What were your senior thesis topics?
It’s about racism essentially. My other one right now is about solitary confinement. It’s bad. I think there was a study where a group of college men were put into solitary confinement. The point was to see how long is would be before they went crazy pretty much. None of them lasted more than seven days.
What are your plans for next year?
Go to college. Oregon… University of Oregon. I am trying to become a physician, so pre-med.
What will you miss about Portland?
Well, my mom and dog. I will probably miss something, but right now, no.
Madelene Riley
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I came in 7th grade, so a long time ago!
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
I probably didn’t say anything to be honest. I don’t remember anything about it, it was a long time ago. Like I said, I’m pretty sure I probably just like stood and stared at everybody and didn’t say a single thing the entire day.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
I really liked a lot of the Visiting Writers series books, that’s been really cool. Also, it’s been really cool reading all of the religious texts, like the Qu’ran and the Torah, because I’ve just never learned about other religions, I’d just heard little bits and pieces about them, but it was really interesting to just read big chunks of them and discuss that because it was something I didn’t know much about but it kind of opened my eyes to everything.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Ian Cummings.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
One time, this wasn’t that long ago, Wagstaff came up to my brother and I while we were walking to the bus stop and stopped us and like talked to us for 10 minutes about how we were the worst influences and that I can’t influence my brother and he just talked to us for 10 minutes just like standing on the street. It was pretty weird.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
I’d probably either say 7th grade science or biology. Seventh grade science was just really cool because I hadn’t had much experience with science and Dan Dunning was the teacher, which was awesome and it sparked in me kind of an interest in science and it just made me super curious to learn more since it was a very fundamental class and I was excited to go further in all the different areas.
What were your senior thesis topics?
First semester I did my senior thesis about subjectivity in photojournalism, which was interesting, I love photography, so that was really awesome. And then this spring, I’m talking about linguistics and its effect on childhood development through fairy tales.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m going to be going to Occidental College in L.A., which should be pretty cool.
What will you miss about Portland?
Probably just all the green trees and green things since there’s a little bit more desert in L.A. but it’ll be awesome and I like sun so it’ll be fun!
What is your most memorable story from Northwest Academy?
I’d probably say freshmen prom was pretty cool. It was fun. New and cool.
Ben Sherman
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I have been at Northwest Academy for four years now. I started my freshman year.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
I don’t remember my first day exactly, but that first week was just me trying to fit in. The small class size really helped. I was really really close friends with a whole bunch of people in my class who I just don’t talk to anymore. It’s not because we aren’t friends, we just don’t talk anymore. I was 14.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
Really been enjoying some of the stuff we have been reading this year. I really enjoyed Red Moon, that was a really good book.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Oh boy, what’s her name? The girl from Game of Thrones, Emilia Clarke. I think that is her name. She is a total babe. So there is that, and then for my guy crush, probably, oh God I can’t even remember his name. Joseph Gordon-Levitt. That man is an attractive man.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
Like literally everything. My freshman and sophomore year he would go around and only call me “Hipster” which eventually devolved into just “Hip.” So he would walk up to me and just say, “HIP.”
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
I’m going to say my favorite class is probably either Garageband or Black and White Photography, specifically with Heidi (Kirkpatrick).
What were your senior thesis topics?
My first semester senior thesis topic was about an underground heavy metal movement that was in Norway during the ‘90s. It was called Black Metal. The thesis was trying to legitimize that as an actual genre of experimental music. These people who were involved with the scene were going out and burning down churches and doing graffiti, like “Hail Satan” all over churches. A few people in the scene got murdered by other people in the scene. It was just crazy. I was trying to say, “Hey, the music in this scene was actually really interesting.” My current thesis is about so much. It is like hip hop, racism and problems with the American judicial system.
What are your plans for next year?
Next year I am going to be taking a gap year. I am going to try to get a day job. I am also looking into getting into a BFA theater program. I am going to be applying to 15 or 16 schools in various parts of the world. While I am in Portland I am going to try to do as much theater as physically possible.
What will you miss about Portland?
I feel like Portland is like a bubble. It isn’t really like any other place in the United States. I am going to miss a lot of that. It is just such a mellow place for me to live. Also I am going to miss taking walks in my neighborhood. There are all these trees and stuff. It looks really nice and it is a great place to take walks because there are never any cars.
Safia Williams
How long have you been at Northwest Academy?
I have been at Northwest Academy since freshman year.
What was your first day at Northwest Academy like?
I don’t remember it. But I remember I had no idea what a thesis was, and we were writing our first essay and Julie told us to make sure we had a thesis. I had absolutely no idea what that was.
What is your favorite book you’ve ever read at Northwest Academy?
Probably A Tale of Two Cities.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Josh Hutcherson. Yeah… him.
What is your scariest/weirdest Wagstaff story?
You know I haven’t really spoken to Wagstaff before, so just walking past him is kind of intimidating.
What is your favorite class you’ve ever taken at Northwest Academy? Why?
Probably Jada’s sophomore class, just because I feel like the structure really helped my writing and I wasn’t expecting to enjoy romantic poetry or Voltaire. Oh, and one of my favorite books that year was A Tale of Two Cities. I actually really enjoyed that. I think it broadened my literary horizons.
What were your senior thesis topics?
I wrote about the emergence of depression in America and the use of antidepressants to help make people happier. Right now I am writing about cryptography, so coding. And, the implications and evolution of cryptography.
What are your plans for next year?
Next year I am pretty sure I will be going to Wellesley College in Boston, and I will be studying mathematics and economics.
What will you miss about Portland?
The food to be honest. Like the food carts and all the great Portland healthy options. Really, the Portland vegan vibe I actually really enjoy. I am really going to miss that. The farmer’s markets. I hope they have farmer’s markets in Boston, they probably do, but just the Portland food.
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