By Alexis Dalton
Alex Hall has been waiting to be a senior since becoming a Lovett Lion his freshman year, but now that he’s here, it’s “kinda same old same old,” he told me.
Before he walked the halls with 24K Magic by Bruno Mars playing in the background (the class of 2024’s theme song), he silently walked the empty halls this summer on his way to tend to the fish in the Marine Biology labs.
Alex has been working in the labs for about a year now and has become extremely close with the security guards after countless early morning calls trying to get into the locked Upper School. He describes his work as a “unique experience that definitely catches the eye.”
Alex was not exclusive to the fish at Lovett, however. He and other Lovett students went to Exhuma, Bahamas to study its ecosystems. He enjoyed deep diving, taking pictures of coral, and snorkeling with color-changing squid.
In August, Alex had to resurface from his sealife-filled summer and return to school. But this time, as a senior.
He loves the “distinguishable” senior uniform of navy blue pants and a white shirt, which he was sporting during our interview. “I like when people move when I come down the hallways,” he told me. “It is very efficient and convenient for me.”
Usually, my senior interviewee mentions the senior perk of standing in the front of the bleachers at football games, so of course I asked if Alex had gotten his front-row seat yet. He sighed before exasperatedly explaining that “we tried” (hard emphasis on the TRIED). “It was the first game, so there were some flaws in the system,” Alex explained with an annoyed tone. “I guess people just need to be reminded, but we’ll get there.”
When he’s not angling for a front-row seat, or walking unimpeded through the hallways, Alex enjoys swimming, making his notes “pretty,” and speech and debate (“on occasion” he noted). Alex has been swimming since he was six years old and has been on the Varsity Lovett Swim and Dive team since his freshman year. This year, he will be the captain of the team.
Of course, there are academic aspects of school: Alex is enjoying AP Art History with Ms. Waterman and is looking forward to taking Honors Latin American Studies with Mr. Buczek. He says that the classes seem “super interesting.”
As for what’s coming after all this high school studying and swimming? I had to annoy Alex with the number one thing seniors get asked about: college. Thankfully, he doesn’t seem to hate the subject just yet. So far, he’s visited the University of Georgia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Howard University, and the University of South Carolina. He wants to visit Harvard University “just for kicks and giggles” and the University of Hawaii because he’s “long overdue for a beach vacation.”
His top choice right now is VCU. “I really see myself thriving there,” he told me. He likes the close-knit environment. “It’s not too small that everyone knows each other but not too big that everyone knows each other […] it’s the perfect goldilocks college.”
And for those of us who will be back here next year, his advice is to “keep chuggin’… you’ll get there.”
Also, if you are ever hungry, grab a cookie from the cafe because, according to Alex, “a warm cookie never hurt anybody.”
