20 for 20: Adriana Hernandez, SGS Alum Class of 2018

I joined SGS in seventh grade and I was both excited and nervous to be going from public, co-ed school to a private, all-girls school. I was seeking a school with dedicated teachers, a close community, and students that were excited to learn, and that’s exactly what I got. That is SGS.  

Middle school is a confusing time, you are transitioning in so many ways and having the SGS community during that time was important to me. I did a lot of learning here, not only academically, but as a person. I was grateful that SGS had a strong social justice focus because that was something I was always passionate about, but I never really had the resources to do anything about it until SGS.

In Wendy’s class, our Voices for Votes rally was and still is memorable to me. A lot of our learning had built up to that moment and it was relevant to the current world around us. We were in the middle of an election, so we were addressing the lack of voters and encouraging people to vote by sharing why using your voice is so important and what it meant to us personally. On the day of the rally, we went to downtown Seattle and we had to choose who would say their speech first. Everyone was looking around all nervous and then I raised my hand and volunteered to do it. I am really grateful that I did that because it was one of my first public speaking experiences—from then on, I felt my growth as a leader.

Another memory that stands out to me is also from seventh grade when I ran for student government. I was really scared that no one would vote for me because I was new, and no one really knew me yet. But I won and was super surprised—I ended up loving it. I’m still in student government today at University Prep. 

The sense of community. No matter what was happening, you always knew that you had your classmates and teachers. There were a lot of things going on in the world when I was in middle school ranging from the election to social justice related issues and it was always nice to be able to come back to this community and discuss what was happening in the world. SGS is a small school with a big sense of community, and I am grateful that I had this time and these experiences before going to high school.

I remember walking in on the first day and feeling so nervous. It’s such a small school and everyone had their friend groups already, so I didn’t know how I was going to fit in. But right away some girls walked up to me and introduced themselves and I didn’t feel like just another student at SGS, I felt seen. People walking up to you and greeting you is a big deal and, in the following year, when we had a new student, I made sure to be that welcoming person for them. 

I’m a high school senior right now and I want to continue my education to study criminal justice and then law. I’ve always been passionate about social justice, and I give props to SGS for launching and growing this passion of mine. They helped me to realize that advocating for others is something that is important to me. At SGS there was a focus on getting to know your community to understand the influence you can have on it, and that is something I want to continue exploring in the future.

I hope that they continue to be the same welcoming space for students that they were for me. I also hope that they continue to encourage creativity and let students express themselves!

 

Appreciate your time there. Once you leave and look back at your experience, you see how much of an influence it really does have on you. Take advantage of the opportunities that you are given here and take risks because SGS is a safe space to explore.