Natalie Morales
Cumulative GPA 4.07 Will attend either St. John’s University or Loyola University of Maryland

“Since my freshman year, I have played soccer for the Blair team and later I also played basketball. And, while sports play an active role in my life, there are other activities that exist outside that realm, such as Community Bridges. I joined the group my freshman year and met a fantastic group of inspiring girls, so I have been in the group since. And as of my junior year, I am also a member of National Honor Society and Class Council, and we work to complete acts of service for the community as well as organize activities for the class.” ...“My favorite Blair traditions stretch far beyond the fall pep rallies and the hufflepuff games. Although these are events I look forward to, I also need to include Culture Appreciation Day. Blair is such a beautiful example of the diversity that is spread throughout our country. Culture defines people's values, beliefs, and personal interests. Culture is important because it allows people to maintain a unique identity in society, and this Appreciation Day allows people to shed light on another part of them that others may not know of.” “In my freshman year on the Blair team, we felt like there was a sense of hierarchy, not only in regard to class but between the JV and Varsity team. We often felt isolated and belittled by some of the other girls. Each year I reached out to make sure everyone could create lasting relationships with all the girls, not only so that no one would feel the way we did in our younger years but also in hopes that the girls would carry that with them throughout the years for future Blair generations. We have a proud organization of Girls soccer at Blair, and we needed to make sure that was reflected on and off the field.”

Emmanuel Kraft
Will continue his education at Penn state University

“Attending Montgomery Blair High School has most benefited me by providing the opportunity to expand my previous interests and develop new ones. I was fortunate to find communities that matched my initial interests. While being on the Blazer baseball team and playing in the Blair Jazz band were outlets to develop my athletic and musical skills, the CAP became my center of academic growth. Through a variety of interdisciplinary projects, I learned important skills such as public speaking, literary analysis, and critical thinking. Most importantly, I explored the intersection of these skills with real world issues. An example was when I wrote and performed an original play about the relationship between a prison guard and a wrongfully convicted inmate.” ...“Improving social justice means striving not only for freedom and fairness in the current day but ensuring equality of opportunity for future generations. Many times, throughout our nation’s history, we have made progress in the direction of social justice only to be faced with another barrier.” “I was able to advocate for social justice my sophomore year when creating a documentary, ‘Homeless Not Hopeless,’ about the homelessness crisis in the United States. I was inspired to focus on homelessness because I had recently worked alongside my church to provide food and necessities to underprivileged families. Our film concludes that a solution to homelessness requires action at a federal level. As I advance in my education, I aspire to study political science and become a central part of this action.” “If every person can find the issue that inspires them and devote themselves to finding a long-term solution for this issue, then we can make legitimate advancements towards social justice and fulfilling the guarantee of freedom and equality for all.”

Medhanit Desta
Cumulative GPA: 4.7 University of Maryland, College Park

“I really appreciate Blair's focus on mental health support,” said Medhanit Desta. “The support that I've received from the school has helped me so much ever since the pandemic started. I have been struggling with severe OCD and my grades suffered and I isolated myself. My counselor was there for me, and she listened to me and provided helpful resources. The journey has been long and tough, but Mrs. Sharma is a big part of why I am doing so much better,” she says. ...She played football - yes, football – for three years, ran track, and was a CAP ambassador. She also trained as a First Responder with the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department. “I feel that I have shown Blair students that it is OK to go outside of the status quo. A big part of this is the fact that I played football as a girl. I hope that I inspired people to follow their ambitions and dreams, even if it does not fit into society's idea of the norm. I hope that more people do what they want to do and do not listen to society’s restrictions.”

Ingrid Ellis
Cumulative GPA: 4.66 Drexel University

In addition to being the student director for Sankofa during both her junior and senior years Ingrid Ellis helped to create the entire script, organized all the auditions and rehearsals, and performed in the show. When she was not busy doing that, she had over 300 service hours from participating in community activities. She volunteered at the Washington Animal Rescue League and time ...to participate in Key Club, Green Club, Student Government, the National Honor Society, Mu alpha Theta Mathematics Honor Society, and the American Sign Language Honor Society. She also volunteered at Shepherd’s Table, a soup kitchen and clothing facility. “In my law class this year one of our lessons was from the history of segregation in Montgomery County and how Blair was one of the first schools to be fully integrated. I have always known that Takoma Park-Silver Spring community is a very diverse area, but to see how far we have come as a community is really amazing. Working with other students we have been able to have judgment-free discussions about different issues we saw at Blair and the surrounding community.”

Elijah Grady
Cumulative GPA: 4.30 Elon University

“Ms. Fox was my English teacher during my first year of high school, then again my junior year when I took Advanced Placement Language Arts,” recalled Elijah Grady. “The thing that makes Ms Fox stand out is that it is easy to see she genuinely cares for her students and will do anything necessary to ensure that they are doing the best that they can. I can say she definitely inspired me to be my best self.”...In addition to his academic achievements, Elijah’s “best self” was involved in the Minority Scholars Program, J.V basketball, and the Black Student Union at school, and in youth choir, Gapbusters Cyber Camp, and Usher Board in the community.

Misgana Ghezai
Cumulative GPA: 4.53 University of Maryland, College Park

“The faculty member that made the greatest impact on my experience at Blair is Ms Gopin,” says Misgana Ghezai. “In my sophomore year I took Introduction to Justice, Law, and Society as an elective, and had the pleasure of meeting her. She ignited and encouraged my interest in criminal justice which is what I am planning to study in college. I would not be the same person or be where I am today without her guidance.” ...In addition to her academic work, Misgana found “Blair’s reputation for being a very diverse school is very meaningful to me,” Elijah, who has a twin brother at Blair, said. “Blair is proof that all kinds of people of different races and ethnic backgrounds can accept each other and thrive together. Blair’s acceptance of diversity is the example of what I hope our world will be like. That is why Sankofa is such an important Blair tradition to me. Through my participation in my clubs and Sankofa, I believe I have positively impacted the overall Blair experience from minorities as well as the whole student body.”

Megan Nichols
Cumulative GPA: 4.78 University of Wisconsin-Madison

“After spending all of middle school doing theater, Megan Nichols says, “I decided to continue my interest in stage crew and set design at Blair, where I ended up being the head of two departments. Also, the summer after my freshman year I decided to work on Mr. Grossman’s farm on a whim. Working at the farm for three summers was genuinely life changing, giving me a sense of purpose. Because of that experience of working in agriculture and learning sustainable farming practices I have decided to continue my education at Wisconsin's College of Agricultural Life Sciences.” ...“I've been working on the school's yearbook since sophomore year,” she continued, “the year the pandemic started, and I have gotten to know hundreds of new people around Blair. I have also seen every important event over the past 90 years through the eyes of the Blair’s students and the Silverlogue staff. We take pictures of people in our communities that reflect our annual theme, and we’ve grown together. Being on the yearbook staff not only gave me great writing and design skills, but also an ability to get to know my community and the best way possible. The way our yearbooks represent our community makes me proud to be a Blazer.