Sara N. '28

I am from Union, Kentucky, a small residential town nestled between rolling hills and the steely glow of Cincinnati. Union taught me to find beauty in the everyday, which is why I grew up to love evening Kroger runs, long, winding neighborhood walks, and the bright sound of snow melting in early spring.

Union defies classification. Whenever presented with the choice between two dichotomies, my hometown has chosen both — and it has encouraged me to do the same.

I’m interested in the relationship between humans & systems — the ones we build, and the ones we’ve miraculously inherited — and the nature of human intelligence, which somehow eclipses everything we’ve built yet. And because the best way to understand human thought is to engage with what it has created, I am also deeply interested in storytelling and language, how we structure our narratives, and ultimately, what we’re trying to say.

I also love: coming-of-age stories, obscure history, dancing, painting on non-canvas surfaces, newsletter subscriptions, graphic design, rocky beaches, HGTV, and large, intricate buildings, like airports, malls, movie theaters, and IKEA.

I fell in love with MIT, the idea, in fourth grade, and fell in love again with MIT, the place, at first sight when I visited almost a year ago. I write so that I never forget that initial moment of awe — so that I can live consciously in each moment of this grand adventure, and see it and love it for what it is and nothing more — fleeting and wondrous.