Meet Ariel Garrett

"The Advanced Academy has proven to me that there are, and will always be, ways to achieve your goals and make a future for yourself."

Ariel's Story...

I first heard of the Academy via my brother; he had gone two years before me. He got a jump start on college and really set the bar for me. I had always been searching for a place in which I could get away from high school and fly from the nest early, but still with the approval of my parents. When they let my brother go, I knew I had a chance to finally find a place I fit in! In high school I got my work done weeks early and never even had to think about it. On the few projects that the teacher forced me to have a group, I was the only one who worked. Whenever I had essays to write, I could do bare minimum and get an A. Ever so slowly I was becoming unmotivated and losing interest in school, then I started studying for my SAT to be able to get into the Academy; not all hope was lost! I had a new vigor driving me to actually use my mind. When I finally got in I was afraid of the cost, but there are so many scholarships available! I now live in Gunn Hall, the Honors Dorm, and it’s so much like a family here. Students in the other dorms on campus say that Gunn is the friendliest; I can at any time walk into the top lobby and enter myself into a discussion about politics, philosophy, psychology and any number of other interesting things. If I want to go on a late night ice cream or coffee run there are always at least three people who are willing to go along. I actually get to use my mind and am challenged by the work the professors assign me. I love it here!