2018-2019 Avatar: Anna Dong

Nearly 200 students from all over Kentucky call the Gatton Academy their home, and I am one of them. My name is Anna Dong and I’m from Morganfield, a small town in western Kentucky. I first learned about the Gatton Academy in seventh grade but didn’t think much of it until two years later. I decided during my freshman year that I would take a leap of faith and try my best to be accepted into Gatton. Fast forward to the solar eclipse of 2017, I was surrounded by Gatton students watching the sun being hidden before our eyes. Like that, my junior year was full of amazing experiences that I will never forget.

Coming from a small town, I never had the opportunity to really learn my native language, Mandarin. When I decided to apply to Gatton, the first thing I looked into was their stem plus languages program. I was very pleased to find that Mandarin Chinese is included in the program. I’ve been taking Chinese at WKU for two semesters now, and I have learned so much – even my parents, who are native speakers, are impressed. In addition to learning more Mandarin, I got to study abroad in China for ten days. I’ll never forget the steep steps of the Great Wall, the crowded streets of Shanghai, and the weird yet cool statues of district 798.

Speaking of study abroad trips, Costa Rica was just as unforgettable. I spent two weeks learning Costa Rican biodiversity. Filled with sea turtles, colorful birds, weird bugs, and the ocean, the trip could not have been better. I made memories and friends that will always hold a special place in my heart.

People are always so focused on the academics of Gatton. How many credit hours will I get when I graduate? What scholarship will I receive? How will my GPA change while at Gatton? While these questions and their answers are important, I think it’s also important to keep in mind that the Gatton Academy is so much more. I came to Gatton for the academics, but I love Gatton for the memories and friends that I made there.

 

Anna