“Decide what to be … and go be it.”-The Avett Brothers
Hi, my name is Tess Everett. So many different factors have shaped who I am today and have helped me grow and learn from my mistakes and successes. Every day I learn something new because of the people around me who want me to succeed. Before Alpha, I hadn’t really thought about how I could define myself. Being on Alpha helped me figure out who I am and what I value. Now I know that I am an empathetic, genuine, reflective, dedicated, and innovative person. In this finale project I will be connecting my characteristics to a stool I constructed in the woodshop at the Shelburne Craft School.

My first characteristic is empathetic. To me, an empathetic person is someone who is conscious of others’ emotions. They take into account how others may feel and let that inform their further actions. I notice this trait in myself when I help others. I know what it’s like to need assistance and support so I feel compelled to give it. According to my parents, I’ve always been an empathetic person; I just turned out that way. But, throughout my 3 years on Alpha, Tamara has further influenced this trait in me. She can tell when people need help and she’s always there. I look up to her and strive to be as kind, encouraging, and happy as she is. Being empathetic will help me in the future because it will allow me to build strong social and work-related relationships. If I want to become a doctor like my Mom, empathy will be a key attribute for me to have in the medical world. Doctors must constantly care for their patients and be sensitive to their feelings. Empathy is supporting others and it can be represented in my project because the stool is literally doing that.

My second trait is genuine. A genuine person is someone who is kind and generous towards others and they are true to themselves. I demonstrate being genuine by just being myself. As my Dad sometimes points out, “Tess is Tess, no matter who she’s talking to.” I strive to be my genuine self around others and not change the way I act around different people. I demonstrate this in school by the way I treat my classmates of all different ages and identities. I’ve always thought of my dad as a very genuine person. He’s always willing to help others because he enjoys it. I can always rely on him to be there for me because in our family he makes sure everything in our household runs smoothly. He does this all with genuine kindness and care. Over the years I’ve seen that and inherited those traits. Being kind makes me a happier person and being genuine will help me find positive and real relationships. You always do work better when you can say you genuinely care about the impact you’re making. My stool represents my true genuine self by incorporating all my interests. Also, it’s a simple and practical design. It’s not fancy, I didn’t add any unnecessary accessories, it’s a stool made for it’s genuine and true purpose; a place to sit.

My third trait is innovative. Innovation is all about coming up with new and creative ideas to solve problems by using past knowledge. We do both these things all the time in math class. As Leigh says, “Everything you need to know, you’ve already learned. Now it’s just about how you can apply it.” At woodworking, making mistakes is inevitable. It’s all about how you progress and use innovation to create something unique and representative of you. My Mom can definitely be described as innovative. In her work, creatively problem solves all the time. She has influenced me and helped me become the innovative person I am. Also, my woodworking teacher, Ryan, is constantly pushing me to think outside the box when I hit stuck points. He always says, “woodworking means constantly problem-solving in order to succeed.” Being innovative will help me in the future because I will be able to work through stuck points with a creative and positive mindset. This is a key skill to have because right now our world needs innovators. It needs people willing to think creatively to better our communities and solve big problems. Innovation can be seen in my project by its design. It’s a normal stool with a normal purpose but its design is unique and creative. Instead of regular legs, I used my favorite sports sticks.

My next trait is reflective. A reflective person is someone who is willing to take the time to look back on their actions truthfully in order to improve. In daily life, I show reflectiveness through my Friday emails when I review the week's productivity. I look back on my successes and challenges and think about how I can move forward the next week. We do a lot of reflecting on Alpha. In math, Leigh has taught us to use our past knowledge to help us move forward - a math and life lesson in one. Meg has taught us to reflect on our actions and be our kindest selves. Wendy has taught us to reflect on our goals and follow our passions. Mo has taught us to reflect on our commitment so we can do well. Being reflective will help me in the future because it will improve my self-awareness. I will be able to look back on my actions and work on improving myself. This will help me in the workplace, and with family and friends because I will be better at understanding myself and others. Reflecting is all about “what can I do differently and how can I do better?” This is important because I can push myself to constantly improve and that will help others improve too. Since my stool is finished with a shiny, reflective polish, I made the connection there, with reflection’s other definition.

My final trait is dedicated. A dedicated person is someone who is committed to what they love and works hard to be good at it. They are also reliable in being there for others or completing a task. In my daily life, I am very dedicated to school and athletics. I show dedication to my sports by practicing my skills when I don’t have practice, staying in shape during the offseason by motivating myself to exercise and showing up to every practice. In school, I show dedication by completing quality work on time and working on bigger projects outside of school. I’ve loved sports since I was little, and I’ve always wanted to do well at everything I do. My coaches have constantly pushed me to be the best version of myself and helped me learn the importance of dedication if you want to be successful. Being dedicated will help me in the future because, in the workplace, it is important to be reliable and consistent in quality and timeliness. Dedication can be represented by the sports components on my stool. The hockey stick, lacrosse stick, and field hockey stick represent the time and effort I’ve put into those activities.

Throughout this project, I discovered the importance of understanding who you are. In sixth grade, if you asked me to choose 5 words that would best describe who I am, I wouldn’t have known what to say. Maybe I would’ve, but they would definitely not be the same as they are now. My experiences on this team have allowed me to grow and change for the better and I’ve learned so much from everyone around me.

To finish this off, I’d like to take a moment and acknowledge the amazing people who support me every day. I’d like to thank my family for shaping who I am and what I value. I’d like to appreciate my coaches and teachers for helping me see and reach my full potential as a student and athlete. I’d also like to give a huge shout out to the Alpha community with all its love and positivity. Here’s to the adults and students who have shown me true friendship and what it means to be a leader, thank you. <3