Certificates of Distinction: A Path to Deeper Learning

At King, each student possesses a unique set of interests and questions about the world. For Wafa Nomani ’21, it was a desire to understand the medications her grandparents were taking. Bryce Heaton ’23 sought to deconstruct the essence of leadership. Luisa Simon ’23 and Ava Gillespie ’23 were curious about the functionality of wind turbines, and Alexandra Oxenstierna ’23 wondered if art could serve as a tool to overcome obstacles.

King’s Certificates of Distinction program empowers students to explore an array of intellectual topics, reflecting the diversity of their passions and curiosities.

From medicine and wind energy to leadership and Surrealism, students take what they have learned in the classroom and apply it to extensive independent research. The result is a wealth of knowledge, enhanced confidence, and refined skills, preparing students for the next stage of their academic journey and the broader world.

Analogous to undergraduate study, King’s graduation requirements comprise a sort of “major” in the liberal arts and sciences. The requirements for each Certificate of Distinction include an additional, focused “minor,” providing a tailored academic experience. This elective program is designed for students who, by Grade 10, crave an in-depth study in a specialized area beyond the broader graduation prerequisites.

“The program follows directly from our belief that adolescents can best develop robust academic skills in the context of a rich curriculum that is flexible and allows for choice,” Head of Upper School Marnie Sadlowsky said.

The Certificates of Distinction program offers six tracks: Global Studies, World Languages, Leadership, STEM, Performing Arts, and Art and Design. Each has its own requirements.

Students seeking a path to distinction declare their interest during the academic course selection process, guided by their advisor, the academic dean, program directors, and teachers, who supervise these diploma distinctions.

“It’s worth noting,” Sadlowsky said, “that some of our required courses for our distinctions—like Leadership Theory or World

Religions or Topics in Global Studies—are open to all students as all our students benefit from the wonderful opportunities these types of courses offer.”

In addition to the opportunity to present capstone projects or portfolios to the community, students who complete diploma distinctions are honored at Prize Day and are identifiable to everyone at commencement by the gold cords they wear over their gowns.

In the following stories of distinction journeys, Nomani steps into a science lab, Heaton deconstructs leadership, Simon and Gillespie collaborate to explore wind energy globally, and Oxenstierna finds freedom in art. Their work embodies the spirit of curiosity and academic excellence that defines King School.

Note: The Performing Arts Distinction is in its inaugural year. The distinction offers students a comprehensive exploration of performing arts, including instrumental and choral music, theater, theater direction, and production. For students interested in pursuing music or theater in college, the distinction includes guidance in navigating the application processes prevalent in those fields.

Certificate Of Distinction In Art And Design

Alexandra Oxenstierna ’23

Advisor: Ran LaPolla, Art and Design Faculty

Students aiming for the Art and Design Distinction undertake rigorous coursework, engage in club activities, and pursue art learning during summers and beyond. They showcase their artistic vision through meaningful capstone projects, considering their societal role and addressing universal themes with originality and relevance.

When Alexandra Oxenstierna entered the Upper School, she sought a path in the sciences and took art classes to balance the workload. She fell in love with art and, by the end of her sophomore year, decided to pursue the Art and Design Distinction.

Working with art teacher Ran LaPolla, Oxenstierna created an accelerated plan to help her cover the necessary material. She served as an assistant art teacher in the Lower School and increased her time in the studio, where she discovered that charcoal and oil were her favorite mediums.

To earn the Art and Design Distinction, Oxenstierna had to present her work at the Advanced Art Colloquium. Rather than focus on ways the work reflected her insights and growth, she challenged viewers to connect and discover their own perspectives.

“I wanted the art to tell a story of the transformation that happens when facing an obstacle and overcoming it,” Oxenstierna said.

Drawing from Surrealism, she aimed to create imagery that portrayed the human experience by combining rationality with dreams.

“I wanted viewers to step inside the experience and see themselves in my work,” she said. “My ability to share the art this way and let the viewers have their own experience with it was freeing.”

Oxenstierna credits LaPolla with helping her find the confidence to explore art at a deeper level and to present her work at the Colloquium.

“The environment Ms. LaPolla created allowed me to fully explore my artistic potential and discover an entirely new path to pursue in college,” she said.

Oxenstierna, who spent the summer after graduation studying figure painting and portraiture at the Barcelona Academy of Art in Spain, is now a freshman at the Iovine and Young Academy at the University of Southern California, exploring the intersection of art, business, and technology.

Certificate Of Distinction In Leadership

Bryce Heaton ’23

Advisor: Megan Yelton, Leadership Program Director

To complete the Leadership Distinction, a student must demonstrate an understanding of leadership theory and meaningfully apply a strong skill set to coursework and leadership roles. Each certificate includes required courses, electives, club commitments, participation in trips and events, and a final capstone project.

Curious about leadership theories, Bryce Heaton was drawn to the Leadership Distinction by his sister, Eliza ’20, who earned the same distinction at King. The program allowed Heaton to take on leadership roles and apply the theories as he was learning them. He began to oversee clubs, guide student discussions, and practice public speaking, developing skills that would lead to his successful bid for student body president.

That ability to hone his leadership skills within the King community furthered his growth.

“I always felt supported,” he said. “As a result, when I led activities, I felt comfortable testing my skills. The teachers were always there for me.”

Of all the concepts Heaton learned, followership theory resonated with him. “The idea that followers and their inputs can be more important to success than leaders and their personal opinions gave me a new perspective,” he said. “Recognizing that is critical for good leadership.”

At the end of senior year, he completed a capstone project through the mentorship program King Connects, which paired him with a King alumna. His mentor was Julie Sheetz KLHT’03, the Chief of Staff for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Throughout his senior year they met monthly and discussed strategies for building his resume and leveraging his LinkedIn profile. Leadership was a central focus throughout their meetings. Sheetz advised Heaton in his leadership development in the Upper School, his decision to go to Duke University, and his future.

Currently, Heaton is in his first year at Duke, taking a wide range of courses in the arts and sciences. As he explores areas of study to pursue, he continues to draw on the leadership skills he learned through his distinction.

“Like King, Duke has numerous academic resource centers with student and faculty tutors that offer support in all academic fields,” Heaton said. “The camaraderie and energy on campus is infectious.”

Certificate Of Distinction In Stem

Wafa Nomani ’21

Advisor: Dr. Victoria Schulman, Director of Science Research

The STEM Distinction allows students to develop their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics skills. Students participate in research projects and internships, learning firsthand the skills used by today’s researchers and innovators, such as literature review, experimentation or project design, modeling, data analysis, and presentation of information.

When she entered the Upper School, Wafa Nomani was set on earning a STEM Distinction, so she selected her courses guided by its requirements. As a sophomore, inspired by her grandparents, she designed a project about two drugs used for diabetes and cholesterol. Her work caught the attention of Director of Science and Research Dr. Victoria Schulman, who recruited Nomani to join the Advanced Science Program for Independent Research and Engineering (ASPIRE).

“When I got into research with Dr. Schulman, it was lifechanging,” Nomani said, adding that Schulman helped her connect with The Jan Grimm Lab in the Molecular Pharmacology Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

At the lab, Nomani’s research focused on pancreatic cancer and how to deliver chemotherapy drugs in high concentrations without being excreted by the kidneys. Nomani and the team worked with different drugs in different concentrations and different conditions, ultimately finding a combination that worked. They had a lot of failures before they found success.

“Failure can be devastating, but then you realize that this is a part of research,” said Nomani, who commuted to the lab five days a week in summer and two days when school was in session. “Not everything is going to work, and that is OK. Sometimes, you don’t answer your research question but make a discovery along the way, and you answer something else.”

Nomani credits Schulman with preparing ASPIRE students to thrive by placing them in the most prestigious labs and maintaining the highest expectations in the classroom.

“Dr. Schulman prepared me to be a researcher in ways that colleges don’t,” Nomani said, adding that Schulman has a detailed guidebook students are expected to use. “I want to emphasize how important it was that I knew how to analyze data, write reports, and create posters when I arrived at New York University.”

Once in college, Nomani realized the distinct advantage that came with her experience when peer students were learning from scratch.

“It can be very hard to find the time to carry a full course load and learn what is necessary to contribute to the lab,” she said. “Because I have that research experience, I have many more options and can explore avenues that interest me.”

Nomani is now conducting research in a clinical research lab focusing on fertility.

“Team members at a recent lab party kept bringing up how impressed they were with what I could contribute,” Nomani said, adding that the scientists noted how well she knew the experimental assays. “With every compliment, I thought of Dr. Schulman and how she pushed me and how she challenged me. I would not have been able to get as far on my own.”

Nomani is in her third year at New York University, where she is studying biology. She plans to pursue medical school.

Dual Distinction

Certificates In Global Studies And World Languages

Ava Gillespie ’23 and Luisa Simon ’23

Advisors: Laura Bowe, Director of Global Education, and Gilles Chosson, World Languages Faculty

The Global Studies Distinction was King’s first diploma distinction, and World Languages followed immediately to meet the needs of students interested in incorporating languages into their global studies work.

The Global Studies Distinction helps students develop a deeper understanding of the world around them. Students in this track take world history, geography, and culture courses. They also study abroad and participate in service learning projects.

The World Languages Distinction offers students a chance to become proficient in multiple languages: Spanish, French, German, Chinese, or Japanese. Immersion programs and cultural exchanges are also options for students.

As sophomores, Ava Gillespie and Luisa Simon earned the Tom Main Fellowship to explore the question, “What is the scientific consensus on global climate change?” They set out to focus their research on the renewable energy of wind power. The global nature of their investigation led them to pursue a dual distinction in Global Studies and World Languages.

Starting with the pros and cons of wind energy, they intentionally worked to move past the political disputes related to climate change.

Simon focused offshore, while Gillespie focused onshore. Gillespie visited an onshore turbine in Ohio, and Simon visited Long Island and Block Island to explore how communities are affected by offshore wind projects. Simon surveyed residents and tourists and interviewed climate activists, fishermen, scientists, climate change communicators, and more.

They also researched wind energy usage around the globe, finding great success with the technology in Belgium.

“I had studied four years of French and two years of Spanish, and Ava studied Chinese and French,” Simon said, explaining how their World Language studies allowed them to dive deeper into their research. “We were able to use our language skills during our research and in conducting virtual interviews with a climate expert from Belgium.”

Their collaboration yielded an 80-page research paper.

“Together, we gained much more knowledge than we would have on our own,” Simon said. “When Ava and I discussed our research, we had very different information to share. Our interviews and conclusions were totally different, but as we put it together, we learned how complex this issue really is.”

Throughout their research, the team worked closely with Laura Bowe, Director of Global Education, and Dr. Gilles Chosson, World Languages Faculty.

After finishing AP French, Simon had an independent study with Chosson, working as his teaching assistant. When not helping in the classroom, he guided her as she developed the class curriculum and lesson plans. She credits the experience with advancing her language skills exponentially.

“Working on this distinction allowed us to work closely with Dr. Chosson and Ms. Bowe, which was my most significant academic experience at King,” Simon said. “We traveled with them on the Global Studies trip to Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Germany, and though this trip was separate from our project, they made sure we saw many wind turbines in use during our travels.”

After Simon and Gillespie delivered a King Talk about climate change, they presented a condensed version to the language faculty in French.

Simon and Gillespie are in their first year of college, Simon at New York University, and Gillespie at Colgate University.