Berwick Academy Announces Class of 2022 Top Scholars

The Cum Laude inductees in alphabetical order are:

Parker Douglas

Parker Douglas of Greenland, New Hampshire, son of Jonathan Douglas and Jodie Deming, has attended Berwick Academy since sixth grade and will enroll in the U.S. Air Force Academy next year with plans to double major in Computer Science and Cyber Science and minor in Chinese. Parker will be graduating with a STEAM Pathway distinction, part of which included a year-long Innovation Pursuit to build an iOS application to facilitate textbook swaps within the Berwick community. Additionally, he was the captain of the varsity cross country team and a member of the baseball team. Throughout his time at Berwick, Parker has been an active contributor to the performing arts, serving as the technical director for several theatrical and musical productions and being inducted into the International Thespian Society. A student of Mandarin since the sixth grade, Parker was also inducted into the National Chinese Honor Society. Parker served as the president of the Chinese Language and Culture Club, Teens for STEAM Club, and Math Club, as well as being a peer tutor and admissions ambassador. 

Ryan Hall, son of Michael and Sherri Hall, of Newmarket, New Hampshire, has attended Berwick Academy since seventh grade. He will be attending Villanova University in the fall and plans on majoring in Mechanical Engineering. While at Berwick Academy, Ryan played on the varsity soccer team and was a captain of the varsity basketball team. He was recognized as an Eastern Independent League (EIL) Honorable Mention Player in soccer and received the Coach’s Award for basketball. Ryan is a member of the National Spanish Honor Society and received the Departmental Recognition Award for drawing. Off campus he is involved in community service such as preparing Thanksgiving baskets and serving food to those in need. 

Tyler Hall of Newmarket, New Hampshire, son of Michael and Sherri Hall, has attended Berwick Academy since the seventh grade. As a ninth grader, Tyler received the Math Departmental Recognition Award and was inducted into the National Latin Honor Society as a tenth grader. Tyler has been a part of the Student Athlete Leadership Team (SALT) since eleventh grade and served as Student Leadership Council (SLC) Chair his senior year. Outside of the classroom, Tyler played four years of soccer for Berwick, two on JV and two on varsity. In his senior year, he was one of three captains and was selected to the EIL All-League team. He also spent three years as part of the Outreach team. Tyler will be attending the College of the Holy Cross this fall and intends to major in Psychology. 

Nicholas Leavitt, son of Mark and Kate Leavitt, resident of Eliot, Maine, will be attending the Honors College at UMaine, Orono next year and majoring in Electrical Engineering. Nick joined the Berwick community as a ninth grader in 2018. Nick has won Departmental Recognition Awards in both the Math and Science departments and was inducted into the National Latin Honor Society in eleventh grade. Nick is a varsity rower on the Berwick crew team and enjoys rock climbing and skiing, both backcountry and in-bounds. Nick seeks to continue learning, rock climbing, skiing, and rowing in college.

Ruby Leonard
Ruby Leonard, daughter of Mark and Dolores Leonard of South Berwick, Maine, will attend George Washington University in the fall of 2023 after a gap year during which she plans to travel and improve her Spanish and Mandarin skills. Ruby came to Berwick Academy as a ninth grader. She was on the Berwick swim team for three years and acted as co-captain for her final year. She won the Coach’s Award her rookie season and the MVP Award her senior year. Ruby has taken Spanish and Mandarin since the tenth grade. She was inducted into the Chinese and Spanish Honor Societies in 2021. She won the fall Departmental Recognition Award for history as a ninth grader and the winter Departmental Recognition Award for languages in tenth grade. As an eleventh grader, Ruby won the Brown Award in recognition of her communication skills. In 2020, Ruby started a small non-profit through which she sells hand-sewn patches to raise money for the NAACP.  

Lily Mansfield
Lily Mansfield, daughter of Amory and Chris Mansfield of South Berwick, Maine, has been at Berwick Academy since Kindergarten. She earned the Cogswell Award in ninth grade and was inducted into the National Latin Honor Society, Tri-M Music Honor Society, and International Thespian Society in her tenth grade year. In eleventh grade, she earned a Departmental Recognition Award in Chemistry, the Yale Book Award, and was inducted into the Cum Laude society. Outside of the classroom, Lily performed in seven theater productions at Berwick, and spent four years in Chamber Chorus, singing in the Maine District I Treble Choir this year. She played four years of JV Tennis, was a peer tutor, co-led the Math Team for two years, led this year’s Berwick Coffeehouses, started a Baking Club with a friend, and participated in the Teens for STEAM and Alliance clubs. Lily also competed in a cybersecurity competition in tenth and eleventh grade, while learning about programming and ethical hacking. She has volunteered at Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, NH as a Junior Roleplayer since 2016, and was a member of their Interpreters-in-Training club in 2019 and 2020. In her free time, Lily enjoys playing piano, reading, and geeking out over movies and shows with friends. Next fall, Lily will continue her passion for STEM by studying Biochemistry at Barnard College in New York City.

Harrison Nigrin, son of Dr. Daniel Nigrin and Ms. Christine Dumont, lives in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire. Harrison has been attending Berwick for nine years and will be attending Northeastern University in the fall with an Undecided major. While at Berwick, Harrison was awarded a pair of Departmental Recognition Awards from the Math and Language Departments. Along with these two awards, Harrison was also inducted into the National Mandarin Honor Society and the National Visual Art Honor Society. Harrison has been involved in several clubs during his time at Berwick. He led the Upper School Investment Club, was a head tour guide on campus, and was a board member for Berwick’s Education for All Children chapter. Harrison’s time on the Hilltop was also spent in athletics. He was a four-year member of the varsity soccer team, a JV and varsity basketball player, and varsity lacrosse manager. 

Noah Robie, son of Christopher and Rachel Robie, lives in North Hampton, New Hampshire, and has attended Berwick Academy for all four years of high school. He is the Cogswell Award recipient as the top scholar for the Class of 2022, his third Cogswell Award in total. Noah was inducted into the Cum Laude Society in eleventh grade, and also received the Chemistry Award that year. In Grade 10, he received Department Recognition Awards in Math and Performing Arts, and was inducted into the National Spanish Honor Society, Tri-M National Honor Music Society, and International Thespian Society. Noah acted in all of Berwick’s theatrical productions: this year, he played Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady and Christopher Boone in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Noah served as an admissions ambassador, sat on the Honor Committee, and peer-tutored. In Grade 11, he was a member of the Student Wellness Advisory Team (SWAT), and this year, he served as one of four Prefects. Noah joined The Vernacular, the school’s art & writing publication, in Grade 9, and edited the magazine for the past two years. He coordinated its professional printing for the first time in the publication’s history, and the Spring 2022 edition was released last month. A writer himself, Noah submitted work to the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and received a national Silver Medal as well as two regional Gold Keys and an American Voices Nomination. At Berwick, he won the Grade 11 Timothy Kelliher Essay Contest and, this year, won the Jane Sutton Andres Poetry Prize. Noah will attend Williams College in the fall, and plans on double majoring in English and math. He’s excited to take classes in many different disciplines and continue participating in theater and music.

Shivani Vora, from Dover, New Hampshire, is the daughter of Rajan and Jyoti Vora and has attended Berwick Academy since ninth grade. She received the Spanish Departmental Recognition Award in the fall of her first year and was inducted into the Spanish Honor Society her tenth grade year. In the eleventh grade, she was inducted into the Cum Laude Society, awarded the Rensselaer Medal, and received the Harvard University Book Award. She was also inducted into the International Thespian Society in twelfth grade for contributing to set and stage design. Shivani also competed on the varsity golf team her senior year, receiving a Co-MVP award as well as an Eastern Independent League All-League Player Award. Over her four years, she has completed two Innovation Pursuits, studying the chemistry of food and building an app to facilitate textbook trading. At Berwick, she has co-led the Math Club and the Teens for STEAM Club, participated as a peer tutor, and will graduate with a STEAM Pathway distinction. Shivani received National Merit Scholarship Finalist and Advanced Placement Scholar status this year and the Maine Regional Award for Achievement in Computer Science from the National Center for Women and Information Technology last year. Outside of school she has competed in golf events across the country and has won Player of the Year for New Hampshire and New England as well as qualified to play as a junior in the PURE Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach in 2019. Shivani volunteers as a Schoolhouse World Tutor, focusing on the SAT Math section by running online sessions for students across the world, and as an assistant coach for The First Tee of New Hampshire, a non-profit golf organization. She loves to read, watch movies, and do ceramics in her free time. Next year she plans to pursue an undergraduate degree in Computer Science at the Georgia Institute of Technology. 

Julia Wagner, daughter of Cammi and Todd Wagner, lives in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire and has attended Berwick since ninth grade. Julia has completed the Global Citizens Pathway, and in doing so, she represented Berwick at the Student Diversity Leadership Conference in Seattle, WA (2019), led the Diversity Club, and was a member of the Berwick Outreach Leadership Team (BOLT) where she facilitated discussions and organized projects with the goal of building a stronger community. She created an Innovation Pursuit in which she examined and wrote about diversity in the fashion industry while being mentored by an NYC-based journalist. Julia was a member of the Student Leadership Council, Student Wellness Advising Team (SWAT), and a Head Tour Guide. She was awarded the Science Departmental Recognition Award in tenth grade and the Blue & White Award in eleventh grade. During her ninth grade year, Julia took part in the Upper School play and varsity swimming where she was awarded the Freshman Award. She played varsity basketball for two years and varsity lacrosse for three years where she was named captain during her twelfth grade season. Julia also spent many afternoons at the Berwick Lower School participating in the After Care Program where she built strong friendships with her younger peers. This fall, Julia will be attending Villanova University and intends to major in either Psychology or Communications.

Peter Wojdak, the son of Joe and Sarah Wojdak, is from West Newbury, Massachusetts. He has attended Berwick Academy since seventh grade. He will be attending Boston College in the fall and plans to major in Finance. Peter played the viola in the String Ensemble for all of his six years at Berwick and was accepted into the National Tri-M Music Honors Society. He played soccer during his time at Berwick and received the Coach’s Award his senior year. He received three Departmental Recognition Awards in his ninth, tenth, and eleventh grade years, from the Performing Arts, Math, and Language departments. He was inducted into the National Spanish Honors Society and also received the Dartmouth College Book Award in his junior year.