The Roslyn High School Class of 2018 valedictorian Adam Robbins and salutatorian Ella Eisenberg are waiting until they move on to college in the fall to begin deciding on a career path.
Robbins, 17, will enter the University of Pennsylvania as a history major based on his love of history, especially European history, and said he hopes to figure out his plan in the next four years.
During his time at Roslyn, Robbins was a valuable member of the mathematics team and the Science Olympiad team since his freshman year. In his junior year, he joined the school’s Quiz Bowl Team, helping the team reach the quarterfinals.
Robbins is also a member of the National Honor Society, the World Language Honor Society and the Science National Honor Society.
When Robbins was in eighth grade, he was observing a college-level calculus class at Hofstra University and flew through the multi-variable and differential equation work as a freshman in high school — a course designed for the school’s brightest senior math students.
Robbins’ teachers describe him as a humble student, working with his peers instead of showing off his intelligence.
“I think what I’ll miss most is the community I’ve grown up with here; I think that will be more of a loss to me than anything,” Robbins said. “I’ve known a lot of great people at Roslyn, and fortunately some of them are coming with me.”
Eisenberg, who is attending Harvard University in the fall, is familiar with her future alma mater, having taken courses on visual and environmental studies and having worked on visual perception research in two of the university labs in the past two summers.
Despite being so familiar with the campus, Eisenberg said a dream of attending Harvard seemed mythical.
“It was something that seemed like such a reach — it’s something other people do,” Eisenberg said. “I already felt at home at Harvard, so it was hard to consider other colleges in the same way, but even after applying I felt no one actually goes to Harvard.”
Eisenberg said she plans to study neurobiology, psychology or environmental science.
During her time in Roslyn, Eisenberg earned a National Merit Scholarship finalist distinction and perfect SAT stores. After school, she spent her time as a member of the Roslyn Marching Bulldogs and the Model Government Ethics Team and worked with Robbins on the mathematics team and Science Olympiad team.
Though ready to begin college life at Harvard, Eisenberg said she will miss the diversity of Long Island.
“I really like the diversity on Long Island, which is weird because it’s often considered a bubble, but compared to other places where it really is only one type of person, Long Island has a nice mix of people and landscapes where you can drive an hour and see apple fields and skyscrapers,” Eisenberg said. “It feels like a perfect balance of everything.”
Reach reporter Amelia Camurati by email at acamurati@theislandnow.com, by phone at 516-307-1045, ext. 215, or follow her on Twitter @acamurati.
