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When you think of intellectual giants, you think of people like Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, and Charles Darwin- people who shaped our world with their intelligent minds. However, when I think of geniuses, Ryan Cooper enters my mind. Ryan is a freshman in high school taking college classes, participating in extracurricular activities, and still finding time to maintain his 4.3 GPA. Cooper will certainly become one of the greats. So, in ten years, remember his name and search for it when you look back on your high school life. I do not doubt that you will find him all over the news, his name reaching across headlines.
Ryan is only a freshman, still new to the high school, yet he has a lot of good things to say about it. He proclaims, “I am really happy that I am in this high school. It’s a supportive environment, and it’s allowed me to grow not just as a student but as a person as well. There isn’t any other high school in the nation I would rather go to.” Ryan clearly loves Aurora High School and works hard to succeed through it.
Ryan is an amazing student and considers himself one due to his favoring characteristics: “I am really adamant at punctuality. If something isn’t perfect, I try to improve it. Additionally, I very rarely procrastinate more than a couple minutes, so that allows me to be very productive with little amounts of time.” As you can see, Ryan Cooper is successful in school because of his perfectionism and efficiency. Having skills like time management and determination, Ryan will surely thrive in whatever he chooses to do in the future.
Ryan is insanely bright, taking college courses and rigorous classes as a freshman. Even though he is way ahead in his high school career, he doesn’t plan to stop just yet: “I intend to gradually take harder and harder classes each year to attempt to grow. I also am trying to learn what study methods will work best for me as before I never studied, but classes are just going to get harder, which I am thankful for so I can learn how to study before I desperately need to.” You know someone is gifted when they can receive top-notch grades and test scores without having to review and analyze their work. However, you also know someone is diligent and driven when they are willing to go out of their way to push themself even when they are miles ahead.
Even though Ryan excels in all his classes, his favorite is AP Environmental Science. He elaborates, “I think the content is fun and interesting while also being stress-free. I also believe that the teacher is one of the most fun and most informative teachers I have had in Aurora City Schools.” As a student in his same APES class, I can concur that it is indeed a fun class. The material is so thought-provoking, and the teacher, Mrs. Watt, is the most light-hearted and caring teacher I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with.
Despite the fact that Ryan is a genius, he still struggles with classes like every other skilled and hardworking student. He states, “My hardest class is probably my honors English class, which has consistently been my lowest grade. I never excelled in English as much as I have excelled in other classes, and this year, it got pretty stressful. I think that the reason it’s so hard for me is because I like having formulas to work with, but with English I never liked how loose the formulas are and I hate transitions.” Ryan enjoys working with equations, methods, and theorems rather than analyzing poems or writing essays. In spite of the fact that Ryan’s most difficult class is his honors English, I believe he is prospering in it due to his dedication and witts.
Not only does Ryan spend time on his education, but he also devotes himself to extracurriculars throughout the school. He exclaimed, “I participate in drama club, jazz band, student council, quiz bowl, and gaming club.” Ryan evidently has a lot on his plate, yet he manages it all with ease.
Outside of school, Ryan is a Boy Scout. Right now, Ryan states, “[I am] currently working on my Eagle rank.” The Eagle rank is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America. If this doesn’t show you that Ryan is sharp and level-headed, I don’t know what will. He excels in school, his extracurriculars, and in what he enjoys doing in his free time.
Ryan is a part of Drama Club and is currently partaking in the school musical this year. They are staging “The Addams Family.” Ryan announces, “I play a part of the ensemble in the Addams Family.” Although participating in musicals can take up a chunk of people's time, Ryan expresses, “It is 100% worth it. The drama program here has so many amazing people that make it one of the most fun experiences I have ever participated in.” Ryan’s enthusiasm for the drama program at AHS only makes me want to engage in it. It is certainly a program everyone should check out if they are interested in acting, singing, dancing, or just meeting some extraordinary people.
Ryan holds an endless amount of memories near and dear to his heart since joining the AHS Drama department. When asked what his favorite memory was, he reports, “My favorite memory was probably just the opening night of ‘The Odd Couple’ as it was one of the most exhilarating moments I have had in High School.” Ryan is still fairly new to high school, yet he is making his mark on the Drama Club, play after play.
A fun fact you may not know about Ryan is that he didn’t originally live in Aurora, Ohio, until second grade. He says, “I was born in Illinois.” Most students would struggle adjusting to a new state, school, and way of doing things, but not Ryan. He wasted no time and jumped right into the Aurora Schools program, surpassing expectations. The day he attended Aurora Schools was the day he changed it for the better.
If Ryan could describe himself in three words, he remarks, “I think that hardworking, determined, and persevering would work.” He is spot-on. Ryan is incredibly diligent and driven to prosper at AHS, and I am confident that he will do just that and more.
Of course, Ryan cannot attend Aurora forever, so when asked what colleges he might be interested in, he mentions, “I would really like to attend the University of Michigan but their out of state tuition with the fact that they offer very little out of state merit scholarships [makes me reconsider; however,] I would also be happy to go to Purdue. Obviously, Ryan has some good contenders when it comes to college. He affirms, “I want to study Biochemistry and work on vaccines in the future.” With that information, look out because Ryan Copper is going to be a biochemist, working on saving lives one shot at a time.
All in all, Ryan Cooper is an incredibly brilliant and capable student, wise beyond his years; however, he is so much more than just his intellectual mind. Ryan is kind, funny, social, and can perform his heart out in any musical he encounters. Again, when ten years pass and you search for his name, remember his mind along with his heart and the magic he brought to AHS.
By: Anna Grummitt
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