story by MaryMichael Hough, photos by Anna Kropf

video by Cecilia Butler

Senior Lauren Nagle dreams of turning her interest in saving the environment and traveling to space into a career as an astronaut.

Last year, Nagle went to the University of Kansas to hear the cast of MTV’s the Buried Life speak. The Buried Life is a reality series that follows four men who are attempting to complete a list of “100 things to do before you die.”

According to Nagle, the cast members were encouraging people to avoid shooting for mediocre dreams, and instead strive to accomplish “bigger things in life.”

“So one day I was thinking ‘what’s one thing I really want to do’,” Nagle said. “Then it came to me and I was like ‘I want to go to space’.”

Nagle began to research different careers that would help bring her to space and came across K. Megan McArthur, a woman who traveled to space and studied oceanography. Nagle then thought she would turn her interest in conservation work into a career in environmental science, which focuses on the relations between organisms and their environment. She would use this career to organize an exploration to space.

“I want to be a hippie astronaut who works on the coral reef and then travels to space,” Nagle said. “I want to be someone who protects the environment and animals.”

According to Nagle, she unplugs everything from her radio to her lamp every morning before she leaves for school because she believes they use power. She even digs through the trash at home and takes out the recyclables. She has also begun to prepare herself to travel to space.

“Sometimes I walk in slow motion and pretend I’m on the moon,” Nagle said.

Nagle also admits that she understands the dangers of traveling to space and has decided that for her “it’s worth the risk.”

“Even if I die in space, like I die in space,” Nagle said. “I would die fulfilling my dreams.”

Nagle believes because space is so unpredictable, in order to succeed as an astronaut you be able to “trust your instincts” and “act on a whim.”

“I think I can read situations and adapt,” Nagle said. “I definitely learn by doing so I can do that in space.”

Sophomore Maureen Whittaker dreams of turning her experience with her younger brother into a future career.

Whittaker’s interest in becoming a Special Ed teacher has stemmed from younger brother, Pete, who has Down syndrome and her mother who works at a school for children with special needs.

According to Whittaker, her brother’s Down syndrome has both influenced and even already begun to prepare her for her future career.

“[My brother’s down syndrome] has made me better at accepting and more comfortable around [those with special needs],” Whittaker said. “I think that because I interact with my brother every day I am more prepared [for being a Special Ed teacher].

Whittaker is also involved in activities that she believes are going to prepare her to be in the special education field when she is older. Over the summer she volunteers at the Lee Ann Britain Center at Shawnee Mission Medical center.

“I play with the kids, help them with projects, and do other fun little activities,” Whittaker said.

The Lee Ann Britain Infant Development Center is an outreach program of Shawnee Mission Medical Center dedicated to serving children with developmental disabilities from birth to six years old.

“It’s a really great program that helps [children with special needs] interact with others and lets them participate in a lot of hands on activities,” Whittaker said.

Whittaker believes that working at the Lee Ann Britain Center and being around her brother has helped her build the one characteristic that is imperative when working with kids who have special needs.

“You have to be really patient [when working with kids who have special needs] because sometimes they won’t fully understand a task, or they won’t want to start a task right away,” Whittaker said. “You just have to stay calm and happy.”

Even though Whittaker thinks more patience is involved when teaching those with special needs, she also believes they should be treated very similar to those without special needs.

“[Kids with special needs] should be treated like they’re different, but not like they’re dumb. There’s a difference between giving [a child with special needs] special attention and treating them like they’re stupid.”

Sophomore Hannah Wells hopes to turn her love for fashion and organizing parties into a career as an event planner.

Wells’ mother began her own event planning company in 1994 called the Wellington Group. According to their website, the Wellington Group “thrives on delivering unforgettable experiences that motivate and impress.” Witnessing these experiences has impressed Wells and motivated her to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become someone who plans social events as a profession.

According to Wells, her mother’s work not only motivates her to become an event planner, but also provides her with experience and helps to prepare her for her future career.

“Whenever I get the opportunity I go with my mom and help her out with events,” Wells said.

Wells’ dream to become an event planner also stems from her love of planning things and her ability to not only come up with ideas, but then carry out those ideas. She also believes that she has strong communication skills and has a “really good eye for things” which are both important when pursuing a career in event planning.

Although Wells sees qualities in herself that will aid in achieving her goal, she has also notices qualities that she must strengthen in order to become a successful event planner.

“You definitely have to be organized and that’s probably what’s going to be hard for me,” Wells said. “I don’t like making lists and that’s a big part of the job, but I am starting to get in the habit of it.”

Wells has decided that she would like to plan large events for organizations or businesses, such as car companies. She also has a big interest in pop culture and would be interested in planning fashion shows and other celebrity events. She is certain of one type of event she would not be able to plan.

“I definitely do not want to plan weddings because that’s way too stressful for me,” Wells said.

Until Wells is able to start her own company and begin planning events, her excitement for her future career continues to grow as her experience does.

“Being around [event planning] just makes me want to do it even more,” Wells said.

Senior Kelsey Rusgis hopes to turn her love for children into a career as a stay-at-home mom.

Rusgis hopes to follow in her own mother’s footsteps by being a stay-at-home mom for a while and then think about getting a job once her children start to enter high school. She also thinks about working part time at a boutique as a “way to get out of the house sometimes.”

“I don’t want to have a consecutive job that I have to go to everyday,” Rusgis said. “I just want kids, like I love kids and I like to take care of them.”

As Rusgis begins to think about college and her major, the one thing she can really picture herself doing is having a family. According to Rusgis, while many of her peers acquire part-time jobs over the summer she uses her skills and interests to work with children.

“I’ve never really had a real job; I’ve just been a nanny and babysat,” Rusgis said.

Rusgis believes that in order to be a good mother she must possess the qualities that her own mom has passed down to her. According to Rusgis, she has also learned a lot about motherhood from observing the relationships between her friends and their moms and even mother-child relationships on television and in movies.

“I think you have to be responsible, understanding, caring, energetic, and fun,” Rusgis said.

Rusgis plans on continuing her work as a nanny and looks forward to being able to start her own family.

“I like playing with kids and I would like to devote my life to taking care of someone,” Rusgis said.