In the eyes of her peers, she is just somebody with a high GPA and excellent test scores––the “smart girl.” Sophomore Rebecca Seickel describes two different kinds of people who view her differently. She says, “…when I hang out with people, they are not really obsessing over grades… We talk about other stuff in our interests, so I think they see me more as a person of my interests than really of my grades.”

She later states how other people who may not know her as well would define her as the “smart girl.” “There are a lot of people who don’t know me that well. They just have class with me and only know me in a classroom environment. So, they really only know if I participate in class, do well on tests, if I do well on labs, etc. They do not know my interests.”

Seickel is someone who loves photography, writing, art, playing soccer and lacrosse, riding dirt bikes, and playing the clarinet, especially Christmas carols.

“I have played soccer since I was five because I really just fell in love with the sport. I grew up playing with a group of wonderful girls and some really great coaches like Mr. [Jeff] Kreindler and Mr. [Roy] Moose. I’ve played lacrosse since freshman year and am looking forward to a sophomore season with one of my role models, Coach [Scott] Ernest, who really helped me adjust to the varsity soccer level freshman year and really understands both the game and the players. He is definitely one of the best coaches that a player could learn from, and I am very lucky to have him as my teacher.”

Seickel also has expressed her interests through the arts and says, “I have played the clarinet since fourth grade because I love the complexity of music and how it comes together beautifully. Playing an instrument gives you the chance to create something exquisite, and after spending so much time playing, I hope to one day audition for the county band. Writing has always been interesting to me, and I have over the years come up with the premise of many different stories. Its really cool to be able to come up with different stories and twists like great writers such as J.R.R. Tolkien. I hope to one day start and finish a novel.”

Seickel is quite enthusiastic about christmas music and in her own words describes how she feels about this upcoming holiday when she says, “I really, really love Christmas.”

Besides exploring the different fields of art and playing sports, she acquires an interest in riding dirt bikes. Seickel says, “My dad has been riding dirt bikes since he was eight years old, and he got me my first Yamaha dirt bike when I was twelve. Riding dirt bikes came naturally to me, and after he showed me the throttle and brakes, I was off in our backyard. My dad and I travel to the Adirondack Mountains to trail ride through the mountains, which is always a great experience, and I hope to oneday learn how to race in motocross.”

Seickel has hopes and dreams that are not to go to the top universities in this country, as one may believe. She wants people to interact with one another and get to know each other better so no one would feel as if he or she is nothing more than a person with good grades. Seickel says,“… you should definitely hang out with someone who could either be the average “smart girl” or the opposite….There is a lot more to a person than if they are intelligent or not.”