Alumni Feature: Cherry Ng
Cherry Ng is a recent graduate from OHS (Class of 2015), and currently studies at McGill University. Roald Fradkine learns more about Cherry in the interview below.
Pixel Journal: How long did you attend OHS and when did you graduate?
Cherry Ng: I attended OHS for four years and I started in 2011. I was part time my first year and then I moved to China my second year and started doing OHS full time that year until I graduated in 2015.
PJ: What have you been doing since then in terms of education?
CN: I’m at McGill University right now. I am a second-year anatomy and cell biology major, with a minor in English literature.
PJ: What do you do outside classes?
CN: Last year I was doing a work-study, so I worked at a Drosophila lab at the Montreal general hospital. But, this year I decided to focus a bit more on staying in McGill so I started writing as a staff writer for the McGill Tribune. I recently wrote a piece, which should be published soon, about spousal hires [http://www.mcgilltribune.com/news/spousal-hiring-at-mcgill-98311/] which was my first investigative piece and that was very fun to write. I also sing for my church choir and I’m involved in some other clubs around here.
PJ: What influence do you think OHS has had on you?
CN: Big picture first, OHS has been very good to me in terms of the breadth of study that it involved. I was able to take all the philosophy classes, all of the maths, science, and English classes. I found that was very helpful in terms of choosing what I want to do in university, because I was able to already have had some experience in different fields. More specifically, I really enjoyed bio with Dr. Failor, so I thought pursuing it further would be a good idea. Someone told me once that you should do your major for your head and your minor for your heart. English is for my heart; I enjoy reading and writing but I don’t think I’d like to make a career out of it.
PJ: Were there any teachers that influenced you a lot?
CN: Dr. Failor, definitely. Also Dr. Lamont and Dr. Dawkins and all the English teachers I had; they encouraged me to go through my writing more and to analyze a piece in my writing, which was something that I definitely had trouble with in 9th grade. You should have seen one of the essay I wrote in 9th grade for AP ELC. We read Tompkins and Said, and I think for my Tompkins essay I wrote something like “Tompkins is like an elephant trying to eat a cat” which was a very bizarre and strange analogy. The English teachers really pushed me to further develop my skills, which is why I really enjoy writing now and I’m doing a minor in English literature.
PJ: What would you change about your experience at OHS if you could?
CN: Oh, I wouldn’t go to two full time schools. I also went to a full-time brick and mortar and it was a lot to handle in terms of juggling OHS academics and juggling brick and mortar academics and social activities.
PJ: Why did you attend two school full time if it was such a challenge?
CN: I kept attending OHS because of the academics; they were just not something I could get at my brick and mortar, like, for example, I would not get a philosophy class. In terms of brick and mortar, the year that I was in China I was just solely full time OHS and I found that I was lacking in social interaction with other people. I am a fairly social person; I like seeing people, I like talking to people and I like hugging people, for example, so I found that going back to my brick and mortar was very helpful in terms of keeping up with social activities outside of school. The thing about my brick and mortar was that I took a few academic classes but I also took things like co-op—so I got to work in a science lab for two credits— and I also took things like gym so I was able to make sure I stayed fit and healthy. It was a bit of a balance, but it was a pretty good balance, just one that took up a lot of time.
PJ: Do you think OHS has given you any advantages?
CN: I think OHS has helped me develop a more articulate voice. When I started in ninth grade, I stumbled over what I wanted to say a lot. Even when going to a brick and mortar school, discussion was not heavily emphasized. But at OHS, I was encouraged to speak more and develop a more articulate voice especially because we have such small classes. I don’t think I would have gotten that anywhere else.
PJ: What did you enjoy about your time at OHS?
CN: I really loved the community I had. I keep in touch with a lot of the close friends that I made, and we still each other every year. For me, meeting those people was a very good thing because they really encouraged me to develop. I grew up in a fairly liberal bubble you could say, and meeting those people and seeing that they hold different perspectives and that they have reasons for those perspectives really challenged me to think about the beliefs and values I hold. Aside from the academics, which are really a bit of a given, the community was really outstanding.
PJ: What is it like keeping up in touch with OHSers after you graduated? Was it different than before?
CN:Well I’m dating one of them, so that hasn’t changed much. I never really had classes with the people I kept in touch with; what really drew us together was that we were all Christian, so we had a bible study together. While we don’t do a bible study anymore because we aren’t at OHS anymore and we have bible studies at our own schools, I’m not really sure if anything has changed. I don’t think anything has changed that much, since we’re all still so far apart and still meetup every once in a while, and talk mostly through Skype. If anything, our friendship has deepened because we have to pursue these friendships more, whereas before we were all thrown together and we could talk about things like homework assignments we now have to make sure we keep in touch with each other.
PJ: Are you still connected to the OHS community in some way other than the friendships you made there?
CN: I don’t think you really leave the OHS community. I think, the OHS kind of comes back to you in a sense, like this week I met up with a current OHS Junior and her mother in Montreal.
PJ: Were you involved in OHS student activities?
CN: I was involved in Student government where I was Senior Class Vice President. Bible study aside, I was president of debate club; we went to the IPPF because it was advertised in one of the debate camps I went to. I also definitely popped by Asian culture club sometimes because Jing and Josh ran that.
PJ: Did you participate at meetups or summer session while you were at OHS?
CN: I always wanted to go to summer session, but I never actually ended up going. I did visit one time though, and I went to the beach with some people from summer session. Meetup wise, I definitely met with people on an individual basis. Actually, I just met up with someone who I knew from OHS today, also from my hometown of Toronto. Oh, and I also went to 10th Grade Grad [2013].
PJ: How do other people react when you say you went to online high school?
CN: Usually my high-school education comes up in conjunction with, “How did you and your boyfriend meet?” I’ll say, “the Online High School” And they’ll say: “You met online?! What website?” Aside from that, people are usually quite surprised that I went to online high school because I think they have this conception that people who go to online high school are very antisocial or are hermits. Especially because I live in Canada, where online schooling isn’t very popular, so the common conception is that people just take classes online and they don’t really meet teachers or other students.
PJ: What would you like to do after University?
CN: I’ve been thinking a lot about going into child psychology and working with children. I’ve had background in working with children with autism, specifically. While at the OHS, I worked at the Geneva Center for Autism —actually, when they interviewed me they were very confused about online high school. I’ve found I really enjoyed challenging myself, and challenging them to grow in their social development. I think that’s an area I’d like to develop more in and I can definitely see myself doing that in the future.
PJ: How would you spend the ideal day?
CN: Well it’s snowing in Montreal right now, and I’ve been pretty busy with schoolwork and other things that have kept me inside, so my ideal day, at the moment, would involve maybe hiking up Mont-Royal before the sunrise, if I can wake up that early, and then maybe getting breakfast at a café around here. Also, possibly rolling down a hill— there are a lot of hills around here— and then maybe skating after that.
PJ: Favorite books or movies?
CN: I really love Pride and Prejudice, I’ve been saying that since eighth grade and it still hasn’t changed. We’re actually reading it for English class next week so I’m really excited. Sometimes when you read a book for English you end up not enjoying it afterwards, but I hope that doesn’t happen this time around. I’m also re-reading the Hobbit right now and it’s so funny. I didn’t appreciate how funny it was the first time I read it, but now that I am rereading it I am giggling every other page. In terms of favorite movies, I would say all the Star Wars movies. I really enjoyed the seventh, but the fourth is a close second.
PJ: Do you have any advice for current OHS students?
CN: Enjoy your classes while you can. Enjoy the small class size and enjoy how much the teachers love teaching.
Editor's note: Interview edited for length and clarity.