How has your life changed since you started going to Hermitage? “I became more independent and started opening up to people a lot more. No one here has really judged me because of who I am; they are appreciative of the things I do. They are more amazed by my cultural and academic differences rather than being judgmental of them. For example, in my other schools, people said things like, “You just try to show off by getting A’s,” or “Why do you care about school so much? I bet you don’t have a social life.” Unlike that, people here have said nice things like, “You are so smart that you will be the best doctor that ever existed.” ~Afra
If you could live in any time period, when would you live and why? "I would live in the 1990’s for the music: Biggie, Tupac, Wu-tang, that type of thing.” ~Jordan
When do you feel most alive? "When I'm in the woods" ~Will
Who is you hero/role model? “My grandpa is my role model because he taught me how to be a man, and I want to one day be half the man as him.” ~Tommy
What would you do if aliens invaded Earth? "I'm not going down without a fight; I'm blasting every alien I see." ~Tasz
What is something you regret? "I regret not taking my freshman year more seriously." ~Lauren
What would you do if aliens invaded Earth? “If aliens came to Earth, I would pack up all of my favorite snacks, my phone, my phone charger, and lock myself in the basement with my family.”
What would you do if aliens invaded Earth? “Well I’d try to survive-I mean obviously-well if they were hostile anyway. I’d find a good place to fortify, collect supplies, and fight `em till the end. I never back down.” ~Andre
When do you feel most like yourself? When I’m by myself. There’s no societal pressure or other people among your surroundings. When you’re just there by yourself you can notice things without anybody trying to force something on you. ~Laura
What do you like most about yourself? “I like my ability to interact with many different social groups without feeling awkward.” ~Nora
Where do you feel safe? “I feel safe snuggled in my bed with my blankets around me, watching Netflix.” – Donovan
What do you fear? "I fear failure." ~Bryanna
What would you do if aliens started to invade Earth? "I'd get together with a bunch of friends or hardcore people and prepare for an invasion by finding places to hide and collecting weapons and food. If the aliens were cool and meant no harm, then I'd chill with them." ~Sara
Where do you feel safest? “I feel the safest at home because it’s where I can genuinely feel secure and be at peace.” -Woody
When do you feel most like yourself? "When I'm at home." ~Martin
If you could live anywhere, where would you live and why? "Japan. They have a really cool culture, and they were isolated for so long. It's pretty unique." ~Temple
What do you want people to think when they see you? “I hope people see me as nice and approachable because I always like to meet new people” ~Jonathon
What inspires you? "I don’t know. Actually, no. My family and friends, probably. I know that sounds kind of silly, but yeah. Yeah. Family and friends." ~Izaia
What is your inspiration? “Seeing people happy and spreading joy to others” ~Anthony
What inspires you? “Um. I would say – I don’t think there’s any word to actually describe my personality. Um, I think my personality actually like evolved over the years. Like I remember in freshman year I used to be like really um “punk-rocker” so to say, um, I used to have like a green strip in my hair and like now I just wear like dark lipstick and listen to jazz music, so I guess it’s like more mature. Um kind of – it’s like mature and immature at the same time.”~Alex
What would you do if aliens suddenly came to Earth? "I'm shooting everything!" ~Mike
What superhero do you identify with the most and why? "I identify with Spiderman the most. Peter Parker is a somewhat awkward teenager who isn't very social. He can be irresponsible at times, but he has good intentions and tries his best to do what he thinks is right." ~Jacob
What do you fear? "I fear heights, spiders, and failing at life." ~Jocelyn
What makes you happy? "Boys make me happy because they're nice and take me out." ~Demetrius
What is something you regret? “I don’t really regret anything because I believe everything happens for a reason and everything has a meaning.” ~Heather
What motivates you to overcome obstacles? "Overcoming challenges can be hard, but the realization that life can always be worse, just as it can always be better, makes the journey through difficult situations worthwhile." ~ Demarco