MUKILTEO — Elizabeth Swanson is a senior at Kamiak High School. She’s a cellist in the orchestra and a leader in her church youth group. She speaks Spanish and enjoys solving math problems.
Swanson, 17, plans to study mechanical engineering next year at Washington State University.
Question: Tell us about your involvement in music.
Answer: I play the cello. I’m the assistant principal, which is the one who leads the cellos.
I’m the librarian for the Philharmonic Strings 1 Orchestra, which is the highest school orchestra. I copy the music, sort it and put it in the big room of music. It’s a lot of work.
This year, I also did the Everett Youth Symphony Orchestra, and we started a rock orchestra.
Q: How did you get into music?
A: My brother was really involved in music when he was in middle school, and I liked his teacher, Ms. Valdez. I asked her what instrument I should play when I was in second grade. She said, “Violins and violas are a dime a dozen. You should play the cello.” I’ve been doing it ever since.
Q: What do you like about it?
A: It gives me something to actually work for. I get to play concerts and work with people and make music.
Q: What other activities have you been involved with at school?
A: I did Key Club for three years. It’s a volunteer service organization. We did random volunteer activities. For example, I helped with two fundraising auctions at the Museum of Flight.
Q: What activities are important to you outside of school?
A: I’m one of the youth group leaders at my church, Mukilteo Presbyterian. There are about 20 middle school students who come. We set up the activity, make sure it runs well and we try to make it as fun as possible. It’s sort of like a family because I’ve been in it for so long.
Q: You speak Spanish?
A: I’m in Spanish 5. I studied over the summer so I could skip Spanish 4. I learned to congregate seven tenses. I watched a lot of movies in Spanish. Luckily, “The Avengers” is in Spanish.
Q: Tell us how you came to like math after not liking it for years.
A: I didn’t like math until 10th grade. The parts, such as geometry or algebra, were all separate. But once you get into calculus, they all start to fit with real-world concepts that are helpful. When you know why, they have logic behind them instead of just math.
Q: What are your plans for the future?
A: I’m going to Washington State University next year. I want to major in mechanical engineering and minor in Spanish. I liked mechanical engineering the most when I looked into it online because the way parts work together in a machine is really cool. I also want to be in the orchestra, but I don’t think I’ll study music.
Q: What do you plan to do with your Spanish?
A: I would love to study abroad. I would like to go to Spain, maybe South America or even Central America.
Q: What are you most excited about?
A: I’m looking forward to meeting new people. I’ve had the same friends since third grade, so it’ll be nice to branch out.
Q: How have you changed during high school?
A: I was a major procrastinator. Now I’m just a minor procrastinator.
I think being assistant principal in orchestra helped because I had to practice, finish journals and get all the rest of the stuff done.
I’ve also learned to value time with friends. I’m kind of an introvert. Until this year, I never really hung out with people. But I’m realizing it’s pretty nice and it’s something I need to value more.
Amy Nile: 425-339-3192; anile@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @AmyNileReports.
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