Page 16 - Menlo Magazine: Summer/Fall 2018

SUMMER/FALL 2018
WHAT’S HAPPENING AROUND CAMPUS?
Walking with Purpose
Many Menlo students from both the Upper and Middle School chose to participate in the national walkout in response to the tragic shootings in Parkland, FL. Student leaders emphasized three goals for their walkout: showing solidarity with those affected, promoting mental health awareness, and supporting campus safety initiatives. Speaking to
hundreds of assembled students, Kathryn Wilson ’18 stated, “We want school to be comfortable, enjoyable, and, most of all,
safe. We have to do our part to contribute to a positive school atmosphere...”
It Takes a Village
Twenty-three Menlo students spent the summer as volunteer interns at Village Tech Solutions, an innovative technology nonprofit that strives to provide safe, affordable technology solutions to rural communities in Nepal and other developing countries. Based out of a Menlo Park garage, the internship offers students a true Silicon Valley startup experience as they work in teams to design hardware and code software for an audio-visual device called Looma that projects multimedia educational content for village schools that have never seen electricity, computers, or, in some cases, even books. The internship, which is offered in partnership with Connections Beyond the Classroom, began in 2012, and past interns who have gone on to college and the workforce return each summer to mentor and offer guidance. “The collaborative atmosphere was definitely my favorite part. Everyone works in teams
of two to five people, so the garage is always buzzing with conversation and innovation,” says intern Alexa Thomases ’19.
Swimming the Distance
Angel More ’20 became the youngest person to clinch the California Triple Crown (CTC) of Marathon Swimming by completing a 21.3-mile, 15-hour swim across Lake Tahoe in August. She has previously conquered the other two legs of the CTC of Marathon Swimming: the Santa Barbara Channel, where she swam 12 miles in 7.5 hours, and the Catalina Channel, where she finished 20 miles in 14.5 hours. While accomplishing this feat, Angel raised funds for the nonprofit Children International. A triathlete, hiker, bicyclist, and open- water swimmer, she has also swum internationally in England, Sweden, South Africa, and Chile.
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