MCHS Valedictorian: Leo Shaw

Editor's Note: Leo Shaw has recently joined the Patch team as a freelance contributor.

Whether it was playing tennis, manning the school newspaper, or acting in various plays on campus, one thing is certain: the chances that Leo Shaw took in high school paid off in great dividends as he graduated with a 4.0 and heads to Bowdoin College in Maine in the fall.

Hermosa Beach Patch asked Shaw about his time at Mira Costa and what he thinks his future holds for him.

Hermosa Beach Patch: What made you decide on Bowdoin College?

Leo Shaw: I'm going to Bowdoin, major undeclared, because, more so than at any other choice I had, there is a close-knit community there that values learning and validates the individual character of each of its members. Its professors are extremely personable, the learning environment is intimate, and I haven't encountered a friendlier group of people anywhere else.

Patch:  Looking back, what did you enjoy most at Mira Costa?

Shaw:  What I most enjoyed about Costa was the ability I had to pursue both my academic interests and extracurricular passions in really great communities of peers.

Patch:  What would you consider your greatest achievement while at Costa?

Shaw:  I consider editing La Vista [the student newspaper] this past year my greatest achievement, not just in the day to day process of managing its operations but in trying to improve content, design, and web features in a way that sets the paper on a path for continual improvement. 

Patch: What was the most difficult part of high school?

Shaw: The most difficult part of high school for me was juggling different activities and classes. I always wanted to do so much and it's easy to bite off more than you can chew with APs, sports, performance, et cetera.

Patch:  Did you have a favorite teacher?

Shaw: My favorite teacher was Bill Fauver. Not only is he a brilliant lecturer, but he treats his students with an uncompromising expectation of hard work in a way you just don't get in other high school experiences. It was rigorous and demanding in a way that forced me to study, speak and write to my fullest intellectual potential, and that was something extremely rare and very gratifying.

Patch:  What extracurricular activities did you do?

Shaw: I participated in La Vista, ComedySportz, drama [where he acted in The Wiz and did crew for The Dining Room and All Shook Up] and played JV and Varsity Tennis from 9-11th grade.

Patch: What advice do you have for incoming freshman as Costa?

Shaw:  I would advise incoming freshmen not to be too afraid of jumping headlong into an activity they are already passionate about or one that just seems interesting. My high school experience has been defined by the amazing people I've learned, edited, played, and performed alongside and that comes with taking chances.

Patch: What would you attribute your success at Costa to?

Shaw:  I think partially it’s just a lot of work; I’ve done numerous all-nighters to study or finish a bunch of my work. Those are hard experiences that you’re kind of proud of looking back on. But also I have to say that I had a close network of people I studied with, friends who I would just go to Coffee Bean and study with. 

Patch: If you had to pick right now what you will be doing after college, what would it be?

Shaw: I really do not know what I'll be doing after college. I have great interest in journalism, architecture, languages, design, and a lot of other areas. I'm guessing I'll be writing in some capacity but in terms of real career choice, I'm not at all certain.