As Malden High School sends another batch of talented seniors off to begin a new chapter, one senior that will be missed is Wendy Nguyen. Nguyen, finishing the year off second in her class, has certainly proved herself to be a hard worker and a dedicated student. In the fall, Nguyen will be staying close to home in Boston, and will be attending Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Nguyen plans to become a doctor, and although she is unsure of her specific focus at the moment, she still “would really like to become one, just so [she] can help people”.
Nguyen’s time at MHS has been largely shaped by her extracurriculars. Being a part of key club, lacrosse, and National Honors Society contributed largely to her development as a student. They taught her to “be a leader, and how to take control instead of just listening to someone. If no one knows what to do, [she now knows] to speak up and lead them.” Part of her character has been shaped by her positive attitude. She doesn’t like “thinking about negative things, especially if [she is] having a bad day, because there is always going to be something to make it better.”
Motivation does not come easy for some, but for Nguyen, she has been inspired to work hard throughout her years at MHS by her parents. “If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t have a purpose”, Nguyen admits. “I can do it for myself, but I really want them to be proud of me, and show them that their hard work wasn’t for nothing.” She adds that “thinking about [her] future motivates [her]” as well, since her parents “didn’t have all the opportunities [she now has], so [she] wants to achieve their goals.” This way of thinking has allowed her to achieve her goals throughout high school, which were to “keep [her] grades up so [she] can have a good future” but she wishes she “had been more laid back, because [her heavy focus] on academics kind of took away from [her] experience.” She also owes a lot to her teachers, who she says “actually taught, rather than being [careless] and not assigning any work” because she “actually learned” from them and “grew as a student”.
Nguyen’s experiences at MHS, like that of many, “has been pretty fun”. She states that although she “made a lot of new friends”, there were times where she faced challenges due to academics, when she got “stressed out, and lost motivation to do anything”. However, she adds that her close bonds with her teachers allowed her to stay in touch with her schoolwork “since some teachers were really kind to [her]” so she would “keep up with their work and try to do the best [she] could”.
Nguyen explains that the most memorable moments from her time at MHS were “volunteering”, because “that is where [she] met most of [her] friends” and they “all volunteered together, so after [they] would always hang out around Boston; it was really fun”.
If she could go back in time, Nguyen reveals that she would “change [her] mindset.” She adds that “most of the time, [she] was really focused on academics and didn’t think about anything else.” She wishes that she “thought more about [her] extracurriculars” because that would have allowed her to “grow more as a person”.
Nguyen adds that what sets MHS apart from other schools is that it is “very diverse” and “there are a lot of people here you wouldn’t meet in other schools.” In Nguyen’s words, MHS “provides a lot of opportunities; teachers give opportunities for summer work and internships, and [she doesn’t] know of many other high schools that do that.” She adds that she will miss “the people here, because they were the ones that motivated [her] to keep going.” She also feels this way towards “the teachers, especially, because they work so hard to help us succeed, so [she would] really miss them.”
High school holds a bittersweet goodbye for many, and Nguyen is no exception. She advises younger students to “try new things” because if she hadn’t done that, she “wouldn’t have met anyone new, and that’s what high school is about: being more social, meeting new people, and trying new things”. As she embarks on the first chapter of the rest of her life, Nguyen’s optimistic personality and go-getter attitude is sure to help her achieve any of her upcoming goals, no matter how small or large.
Photo by Manale Zouhir.
