Portrait of A Young Friend: Amanda Becker ’18
BFS lifer Amanda Becker ’18 is a bright light at BFS and at many points beyond our community. She has been profiled on the Friends Council of Education’s website (see Amanda Becker: Giving Back to Quaker Education) for her hard work as an FCE intern this past summer, she is a regular Scholastic gold and silver award winner for her writing and photography, a student athlete, multi-talented musician and much more. Amanda is actively involved with the Quaker Youth Leadership Conference, and this summer she was one of three students to represent BFS at an international youth forum on civic engagement and sustainability in Japan.
“Senior year has been incredibly stressful, between IB and the college process,” said Amanda. “There is a lot to get done and I am constantly trying to push myself to do better, especially because first-semester senior year counts for college. It’s challenging, yet I know after I’m done with the first semester I’ll look back and be proud of what my peers and I have accomplished. It was really rewarding to finish my [IB] extended essay,” she added. “I can’t say the process was very fun, but having finished it I’m proud. Also, it’s been great to have a couple new teachers this year, some of whom had not taught me since freshman year.”
Amanda does set aside some time for fun. Already this year, the accomplished photographer collaborated with classmates on a cinematic short. “We made this short, funny little video with a couple of friends that got shared around and a few of the teachers in the Humanities office actually made their own version of it.” She also enjoys her IB music course. “It combines performance, music history, theory, and composition,” she said. “I’m working on three pieces, two original compositions for voice and guitar, and voice and ukulele, and one arrangement that takes a vocal and piano song and arranges it for a string quartet.”
Again this year she will lead an annual leadership workshop, which she designed herself, for sophomores preparing for the Upper School’s Community Issues Conference, in which students learn about local concerns and participate in collaborative problem-solving to identify ways that they, as young people, can support constructive change in the community. The conference is organized by the entire 10th Grade in collaboration with the school’s Service Learning & Civic Engagement Office, its Director Natania Kremer and Associate Director Noel Quiñones
Amanda is involved in a wide range of other activities and clubs including Model UN, yearbook photo editor, varsity softball, orchestra violinist for the school musical, student ambassador for the Admissions Office, music teacher, and member of the Asian-Pacific Islander Affinity Group.
Outside of school she enjoys gymnastics and sometimes performs with a band led by a Sidwell Friends alum, Andy Suzuki & the Method.
College decisions are still several months away but “as of right now,” Amanda says, “I intend on majoring in international affairs with a minor in educational studies.”