KODY TINGA

University of Chicago How was your high school life?

I really enjoyed my time in high school, and I feel that through it I was able to discover things I was passionate about, and was able to work on them and improve myself. As the president of the Forensics and Debate Club, and editor in chief of the school newspaper, Bamboo Telegraph,I strove to provide avenues for students to express themselves in both the spoken and written word.

How was high school particularly in the pandemic?

With almost half my junior year, and my entire senior year held during the pandemic, I felt that more than ever, I really had to hold myself accountable for keeping track of all my various assignments and projects. When you’re not in that classroom setting, even with Zoom classes, the lack of face-to-face contact forced me to be more proactive and self-directed in terms of my work. I think it was the support of my family that really helped me to see things through. Case in point, the support they all gave me while I was writing my college applications was invaluable.

One thing that helped me remain connected to the outside world was my volunteer work with the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Elderly, an order that provides care and dignity to seniors who have no one to take care of them. Throughout the pandemic, I continued to help them by sourcing some of their needs. Sister Isabel, the administrator, would contact me whenever they needed something, and with the support of friends and family, I worked to procure the necessities they were requesting. This experience allowed me to grow because I was able to recognise that there was still a larger world outside the four walls of my home, one with needs that still had to be met and one that would still keep moving despite the present situation.

What are you most excited for?

To be in a new environment, interacting with new people with different perspectives and backgrounds. Living in Chicago will be the first time I would be living alone, outside the Philippines, and in a place that has winter. I’ll admit, the picture is more than a little terrifying, but I think such a sharp change in scenery will really help me to grow. Moving to another country and having to interact with classmates face-to-face after a year and a half of online school will definitely be a big adjustment, but it’s one that I think will be extremely rewarding. I am planning to take Political Science.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

In five years, I see myself gaining relevant work experience in order to prepare for law school, which is my long term plan.