New Faces in the First-Year Class
Our international students have fascinating stories to tell—about growing up in their homelands, working to change and improve their communities, achieving remarkable success despite difficult odds, and more.
Apurva Damani, India
Apurva attended Cathedral and Jon Connon School in Mumbai, where she was an active member of her school community. She was secretary of both English Dramatics and Hindi Dramatics and heavily involved in debate, volunteer service, and playing the keyboard. Of these, she finds theater to be especially inspiring. She tells us, “I love being able to immerse myself into another person’s life; that’s the beauty of acting.” Apurva also loves writing and says that being a journalist is her dream. She considers herself to be empathetic and stands up for what she believes. This strong young woman is admired by her peers and was a school prefect this year. She looks forward to coming to campus.
Hyung Ki Kim, Korea
Hyung Ki is originally from Korea but attended secondary school in Auckland, New Zealand. Hyung Ki has been deeply engaged with his school community, evidenced by his participation in student government, Model United Nations, band, and choir—his counselor calls him the school’s leading musician. He especially enjoyed Local and Global Action Committee, a student-run organization that coordinates school events. Hyung Ki is interested in majoring in film and media culture and/or sociology and anthropology. With his wide array of interests, we are excited to see where Hyung Ki will go with his Middlebury experience.
Geesu (Gee) Lee, Korea
Gee grew up in Korea and attended high school in upstate New York. He tutors children in Korean language and culture and is founder of the volunteer services club at his school. This warm-hearted young man is dedicated to people. He has been a dorm proctor, volunteered in a hospital, and helped construct homes with Habitat for Humanity. He considers his most important work to be doing service for a leper colony on a remote island in Korea—“I became their eyes, their hands, and their mobility.” Gee has a firm grounding in social justice, which earned him a place on the Judicial Committee at his school. Gee also plays tennis and soccer.
Elizabeth McCarthy, New Zealand
Elizabeth is from Wellington, New Zealand, and attended Li Po Chun United World College in Hong Kong. In her spare time, she has been an actor, a representative on student government, a member of the crew team, and a volunteer in a children’s cancer ward. She helped a group called “Initiative for Peace: Focus on Kashmir” raise funds and plan a conference aimed at conflict resolution—the organization brought 20 students each from India and Pakistan for the event. Elizabeth’s penchant for social justice has emerged in other places, too: She currently sponsors a little girl from Myanmar. She shared her philosophy with us: “You are never too young or powerless to change a life or a situation. Passiveness will change nothing.”
Lave Nilsson, Sweden
Lave hails from Lidingo, Sweden. He is a member of student council, a sports lover, and an entrepreneur. He partnered with two friends to form a company called Mobil Utbildning (Mobile Education), in 2008. The company is founded on the principle that cellular technology can be used for learning. Lave and his partners are developing educational software that works on mobile phones. They design multiple-choice quizzes for topics ranging from the SAT to foreign languages. Lave believes that “knowledge enables one to bring about positive change.” He is interested in studying economics or international politics and economics, but regardless of what he studies, we know he will bring creativity and enthusiasm to campus.
Evelyn Rotich, Kenya
Evelyn is from Eldoret, Kenya, in the Rift Valley, where she attended Moi Girls’ HS Eldoret. She was chosen to be a KenSAP student by the highly selective Kenya Scholar-Athlete Project, which helps gifted students who are also excellent athletes from underserved areas of Kenya gain admission to elite universities in the U.S. She has spent time aiding victims of the post-election violence in Kenya. Accomplished and strong, Evelyn speaks her mind clearly and forcefully to aid others.
Elisabeth Seite, Japan
Elisabeth was born in Tokyo but grew up in Switzerland and France before returning to Japan to attend Lycée Franco Japonais de Tokyo. She feels she has always been part of small but eclectic communities, and we look forward to having her in ours. After witnessing the smog hovering over Los Angeles, Elisabeth became interested in environmental studies, which she anticipates pursuing on campus. She is also considering pursuing political science as a major. Elisabeth has visited both California and Florida and looks forward to spending this next chapter of her life in Vermont.
Wen Bo Zhang, China
Wen Bo comes to us from Hangzhou, China, and brings with her a penchant for environmental studies. She led the Sustainability Club at Magee Secondary School in Vancouver, British Columbia, encouraging her peers to recycle and organizing other green projects. Wen Bo believes that living in diverse places—China, Singapore, and Canada—has instilled in her a natural interest in international issues. At this point, international politics and economics or environmental studies are her top two choices for a major. In addition to her environmental and international interests, Wen Bo organized talent shows at her school, served as a class representative on student council, and supported the arts as the president of Star Club. She loves public speaking, and we are excited to hear her voice at Middlebury this fall.