Senior of the Year: Lauren Kim

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In a second-floor practice room in the Forrestal-Bowld Music Center, senior Lauren Kim nervously warms up on the flute for a performance in the Bowld later in the evening. Earlier that day, Kim has already soaked up the rare New Hampshire sun by embarking on a run along Swasey Parkway and hanging out with her friends. She’s done a meager bit of work, but it doesn’t stop her from the anticipation of downing her concert-black dress, performing, and the relief she will feel as she plays her last note and the audience rises in a standing ovation. It sounds too perfect to be true, because it almost is— this is Lauren Kim’s projected senior spring day. 

Local to Singapore, Kim first had a taste of Exeter during the five-week Exeter Summer program. “I think my first impression of Exeter was that it was motivated people who want to pursue the fields that they want to do, but also have a lot of fun at the same time,” Kim explained. Being raised in Singapore, Kim wanted to find something away from her bubble, something greater than what the small math and history competitions offered. “I’ve always wanted the American high school experience. Even though I went to American and Canadian schools, the experience I had there wasn’t innately American. I knew that the clubs and the extracurricular activities offered at American high schools are so much more than what’s available in Southeast Asia.”

Kim’s first encounter with the real Exeter was restricted by Covid, but once she stepped foot onto campus, she didn’t hesitate to participate in as many things as her schedule physically allowed. Aside from being a proctor in Wheelwright, Kim is also the co-head of Korean Society, Chemistry Club, Legal Society, and Pendulum. Having a soft spot for Exeter’s Music Department, Kim also plays the flute for the Chamber and Symphony Orchestras, and spends much of her time in the music building working for the Music Library. Previously, Kim ran cross country and track, as well as participated in Debate and was on the 145th Board of The Exonian. 

Kim first arrived at Exeter gravitating towards humanities, but over the course of four years, she has expanded her affection towards STEM. Her love for humanities has not been lost in the maze of her Exeter journey; instead, she developed a strong interest in the intersection of the two areas. “I came here as a total humanities major, so I was like, ‘I’m going to register for five histories and I’m going to dedicate all of my time to all the literature and humanities clubs like Debate or The Exonian. I came in with the mindset that ‘I don’t like science, I don’t like math.’ The way that Exeter teaches STEM is so unique and sometimes I disliked it, but most of the time I’ve benefited from being able to think more deeply and being more connected to people who are passionate about STEM. After Exeter, I still think I have that passion for the humanities in the books I love or in the courses I’ve taken, but now I also want proficiency in applied science or engineering fields, particularly in chemistry and chemical engineering. I’m now fascinated by how futuristic and concrete science can be. Whether my future career is in biotech or in foreign service, I’m content with either.” 

When Kim was asked about some core memories she had collected over the past four years, she hesitated to name a singular one, but eventually settled on a TED talk on eating disorder recovery she’d given with senior Anvi Bhate and alumna Ale Murat that stemmed from an impromptu post-practice Me and Ollie’s excursion from her track days. “It was such a powerful thing for us to do because the premise of this entire talk is that we were all running track together in the winter and we stopped by Me and Ollie’s and talked for a bit about things we had in common, and we birthed this idea of a TED talk. We spent hours writing this script and it was really hard to do, just because it was about really personal experiences. But when we went up there on the stage and we spoke, and I saw my friends in the crowd and it was really sweet. After the TED Talk, I got so many messages and hugs from people and they were all thanking me for speaking up on this. I think that generally has been one of my favorite memories at Exeter,” Kim described, “just seeing the community come together for my story.”

Another core memory of Kim’s has been enjoying the home-cooked dinner with her fellow Korean Society members. 

“Lauren and I are co-heads of Korean Society alongside Lianna and Laurie. It’s always super fun running Monday night Korean Society dinners together, a lot of good memories from KS over the years,” senior Will Soh said. 

“One day for KS in the fall, the Korean Society adviser, Ms. Tinsley— her mom was in town, so she decided to organize this event with all the Korean society members in the Phillips Church basement. Her mom cooked kimbap, tteokbokki, and bulgogi. It was the best meal I’d had in ages at the time. We all got to help out with rolling the Kimbap and I remember that it was just such a nice way to end fall term,” Kim added. 

Aside from close contenders such as Laney and Lu (“I have a penchant for Açaí bowls. Like, I love Açaí bowls so much. If you get me an Açaí, I will love you forever,” Kim expressed), Kim has probably spent the most of her time in the Forrestal-Bowld Music Center. Influenced by her mother, Kim started playing the flute in fourth grade under her guidance, but prior to Exeter, Kim had never participated in a professional ensemble. “I played the flute, but we were short on oboes, and Mr Smith decided to delegate one of us to play the oboe part. I walked in on the first day of Orchestra expecting to be second or third flute, then I found out that I got first oboe and that I had a million solos. I think I freaked out so much that rehearsal because I was terrified as I was a lowerclassman and I was terrified of everyone. But I think like everyone that I’ve been close to in the music department really helped me a lot with that. Like my flute teacher, Ms. Mielens, would help me go over any rhythms that I didn’t know how to play. Anyone else who played the flutes also helped me a lot.” 

“Lauren has so many special and beautiful qualities,” Symphony Orchestra Conductor Rohan Smith started. “Apart from being a fabulous flute player, she has a special quality of humility. She’s a very generous spirit and a collaborative person who’s happy to play in any supporting voice in the orchestra. Of course she sounds wonderful when she’s playing First Flute, but what I have always admired about her was that quality of collaborative generosity. And another thing about Lauren is her willingness to soak up input and apply it so that she is able to improve her playing and her musicianship, which she did over the last couple of years. So she’s now one of our finest flute players,” Smith continued. 

Despite her nerve-wracking first impression of the Orchestra in the Bowld, Kim treasures the music building immensely, and has often spent her days skimming through the flute solo repertoire and working in the Music Library. 

“I’ll never forget the interview that I gave with Lauren when she came for her interview last year,” Music Librarian Andrew Gatto recounted. “Normally, when students come to meet with me, when we tour the library and I show them how the job works and what their responsibilities are going to be, I sense a little bit of intimidation with them. They’ve never done it before and it’s understandable that they’d be nervous. However, Lauren immediately seemed very confident, eager, willing to learn and to jump right in and get started. Unlike most of the students that I interview, she actually had questions for me. She was actively asking me questions through the entire interview, which I took to be a sign of intelligence and enthusiasm and willingness to roll her sleeves up and do the work.” Gatto described. 

Across North side, teetering on the edge of town, is Kim’s other metaphorical, or rather, literal home at Exeter— Wheelwright. “I think Wheelwright is just a fun community. You can come into the common room at any time and just complain, rejoice, or laugh. It’s been one of my main constants throughout all four years here,” Kim said. When asked about the kind of person she wanted to be in the future, Kim was quick to shout out her Wheelwright role models. “I think I model the people that I want to be from the upperclassmen in my dorm when I was a lowerclassman. They were just such amazing figures. Kiesse Nanor, she was just such an inspiring role model. People like her were so accomplished, so talented at everything and obviously so, so smart. But they were very humble about it and she was such an amazing presence in the dorm,” Kim explained. 

“I feel like now as a senior, every time she reaches out to lowerclassmen especially, it’s never straining,” upper Davido Zhang shared.

Kim also reflected on the supportive atmosphere the Wheelwright common room provided when she was an underclassman battling the Exeter Math 3-4 book, and how she hoped that as a proctor, she has continued to cultivate that warm environment. “I relied so much on the seniors in my dorm to tutor me, to help me, to give me advice. And they never refused. There were always twenty or so people in the common room. When I came in and was like, ‘I need help with math,’ a lot of people would volunteer,” Kim commented. “I’m just so, so grateful for that support resource, especially as a lowerclassman who had no idea what they were doing. I think I tried to be that person, for the people in my dorm, I hope I have, but I think no matter how incredible you are or how accomplished you are as a person, if you don’t help other people, it’s almost like not worth it, you know?” 

To me, it seems clear that Kim has done everything to extend some of her warmth to the lowerclassmen of Exeter. I stumbled into the Bowld prep year, my Lion card still swinging from a maroon lanyard around my neck, and found myself in the exact predicament Kim had found herself in just two years prior– I had gotten the first oboe part, bombarded with a million solos, but I had no ensemble experience and could barely sightread. The only difference was that I actually played the oboe. Still delegated to play first oboe alongside me, Kim took me under her wing. After the rehearsal, Kim offered to teach me how to play our joint part and we exchanged numbers. When I met up with her, Kim was radiant, welcoming, and a great listening ear to my prep fall drama. By the end of our practice session, our instruments were long abandoned, the score of Beethoven’s Symphony No.7 in A Major barely leafed through, and I found myself confiding in Kim as if we’d known each other for years. 

Unsurprisingly, my anecdote of Kim’s selflessness and compassion has also been reiterated by many of her close companions at Exeter. “No matter how busy she was, every time I needed her, she made time to be there for me. She is also very spontaneous! She was always down for a random Cap Thai lunch, and I am super thankful for that,” senior Chelsea Zhao said. 

“She isn’t judgmental at all and if you want to be her friend, she’ll take you in and make you feel good. I feel like she’s a very inclusive and welcoming person,” senior Nataly Delcid echoed. 

“I remember I met Lauren online the summer before prep year, during Covid. I remember instantly thinking she was one of the funniest people I’d ever met, and just talking to her made me excited to come to Exeter in person. We had the same exact music taste, which I thought was awesome, and we’d listen to music on call together,” senior Calista Lee recounted. “Now, I think she’s still the same silly and fun girl I met in prep year, but she’s matured a lot since then. She’s always been thoughtful and kind, but I think she’s definitely become more confident in herself and happier.” 

Kim’s personal growth over the years at Exeter has not been lost on her either. “I think I’ve become more of a person who prioritizes herself and her friends and the things that she cares about. I think overall, I’ve become more in touch with what I want to do with myself and what I want best for the people that I love,” Kim reflected. “I’ve gained so many different interests and so many different passions and I think I’m going to graduate from Exeter and know exactly what I want to do with my life, how I’m going to do it, and the kind of people that I want to surround myself with. So I think Exeter has given me a greater sense of momentum.” 

“I think I’ve seen Lauren grow up in a lot of ways over the past year. I think she has shown immense strength and emotional maturity throughout the year,” senior Achyuta Rajaram agreed. 

“Lauren has always been this fun, awesome girl, but she’s really started to mature and be someone who really understands her self worth and she will do what it takes to succeed in life,” senior David Goodall said. 

From an outsider’s perspective, Kim can do it all, and has done it all. “Her work ethic is unparalleled,” senior Hannah Park said. “She always makes time for her friends while dedicating herself to her studies.” 

From Kim’s point of view, managing her time well has been a constant struggle for her, but she imagines that being exhaustingly busy is a good problem to have. “My prep and lower years, I was super busy all the time. I was always running to track practice or orchestra rehearsals or some club meeting and hanging out with these people or studying for this class,” she narrated.  “My life was just so jam packed prep and lower year. That hasn’t changed.”

“My first impression of Lauren was somebody who was very excited and eager to pursue all that Exeter has to offer,” Mathematics Instructor and Kim’s adviser Brandon Hew commented.  “I think over time, she’s done a good job in understanding that she can’t necessarily pursue everything and still maintain a healthy routine. I think, while not necessarily perfectly, at this point as she prepares to graduate, I think she’s understood the value or starting to understand the value of really honing in and pursuing things, while also balancing her own self-care and wellbeing.” 

If Kim is working on something, there is no chance that she will take a shortcut. “Lauren has an innate curiosity and excitement about learning. This is one super inspirational thing; she hates shortcuts and loves to learn things immensely rigorously. I think that this will take her far, and let her get excited about all of her activities,” Rajaram said. 

“I had Lauren in US history twice. The first time I had her was in history 410,” Instructor in History Troy Sammuels recounted. “In our course reader, there was a mix up in terms of assignments. My assignment said, ‘Read chapters 1 and 2 of this author,’ and Lauren had misread the assignment. Instead of reading the twelve pages of assigned reading, she thought I’d asked her to read sixty pages. Now this is kind of a fork in the road moment for most students— they either see the sixty pages and not touch them, or they actually read the sixty pages. Lauren had not only read it, but came and was actively upset that she wasn’t able to discuss these readings, which were dense theoretical texts that she had just eaten up. When we came to writing papers, both that term and then again when she was in my 430 class, she returned to these readings, and engaged with them in a way that showed she had not only read them, but thought deeply about them. I think this willingness to go that extra step, which most many Exonians have, but to then embody that moving forward, I think really explains who Lauren is.”

Kim’s perseverance not only prevail in an academic setting, but also hilariously, in a spontaneous term of PE Cycling. Senior Anvi Bhate narrates an anecdote of Kim’s cycling journey, but aside from its sheer comicality, it proves Kim’s endless persistence once again. 

“The one funny thing about Lauren is I remember her telling me, in 2020, that she didn’t know how to ride a bike. Then this term, because we weren’t in the same dorm anymore, we wanted to do some activity together. I really wanted to sign up for PE cycling, but Lauren reiterated that she couldn’t ride. And I was like, ‘You’re eighteen years old, maybe it’s time you learn how to ride a bike,’” Bhate said. “On the first day, everyone was convinced that she wasn’t going to be able to ride a bike. We all just went on a bike ride and we were just like, ‘Well, Lauren will probably change PEs.’ And when we came back she was riding a bike on two wheels, with no trainer wheels or anything, despite the fact that she was falling everywhere when we had left. I was so in awe of that.” 

Director of Studies and Kim’s previous Chemistry Instructor Jeanette Lovett described her first impression of Kim as being “hardworking.” “Her diligence and persistence are not just in pursuit of grades, but rather the mastery of concepts and skills,” Lovett said. 

In the face of adversity, Kim isn’t one to shy away from an obstacle. Science Instructor and Kim’s Track coach Mark Hiza recalls a favorite memory of his with Kim where Kim shows her patience and determination.“She came back from a running injury during her lower year and ran a personal best 1500m time during the Exeter/andover meet at the end of the season,” Hiza said. 

“All the while, she manages to feel genuine; she doesn’t see things as just a “stepping stone” for her career. She feels really excited about everything she does, which is really admirable,” Rajaram remarked.

“She’s a very curious person. I love being friends with her because she’s so interested in many things. You can really see the moment when someone says something and her eyes light up. It can be something completely unrelated to something that she was previously passionate about, but she’ll listen and get excited. She just thinks in such interesting ways and she thinks about such interesting things that every conversation is new, fun, and exciting.” Bhate affirmed. 

As all Exonians have, Kim has also had her fair share of let downs in her Exeter journey. “Debate has always been such a part of me since prep year and then I didn’t get co-head last winter and I remember that I was very sad about it,” Kim said. “In the end, Debate has taught me a lot about public speaking and being able to think and speak on the spot, especially considering that parliamentary debate is unprepared for. You come into the round with zero research done and zero background. Just being able to speak well with other people, communicate my ideas and not just rely on preparation but be able to think for myself, I think I’m really grateful Debate taught me that.” 

In Kim’s senior Meditation, she thinks back on her childhood growing up with eczema, a genetic skin condition. She reflects on her relationship with her mother and her core memories of her mother tending to her skin from a young age. “I’m always convinced that we actually moved to Singapore because she thought the humidity would help my skin. I don’t know if that’s true or not. I think the way my mom took care of me when I was little, that was like a defining moment with her,” Kim said. “My mom is just such a big presence in my life and I just wrote about how that presence has changed and altered as I went to Exeter and as I’ve grown up especially with cultural differences as a Korean American and with my mom being ultra-Korean and me being super Americanized.” In her Meditation, she also references her connection with the flute and organic chemistry. Perhaps, in this culminating “full circle” moment of Kim’s experiences preceding and during Exeter, this is quintessential Lauren. 

Kim also has a fondness for poetry, which isn’t surprising considering her passion for humanities even before attending Exeter. “Throughout middle school, I’ve always found political science, literature and legal studies fascinating—  anything related to writing and general human expression,” Kim said.

As a co-head of Pendulum, Kim is still grateful for the club to have encouraged her to share her writing. “I remember as a lowerclassman in Pendulum, what we would do is encourage people to read their writing and we would provide verbal feedback on the spot. I think it takes a lot of bravery to be able to share your literary work and get feedback immediately from others. I think it’s very courageous. I was nervous at the first few Pendulum meetings, but I grew to really like it,” Kim said. “I worked on the Pendulum issue last year and we got to distribute it and it was just really nice seeing it sort of culminate together.”

 In addition to being the co-head of Pendulum at Exeter, Kim is also one of the New Hampshire Teen Poet Laureates, a group of ambassadors that promotes the art of poetry to teens in New Hampshire. “I love the opportunities I get to connect with poets and writers all across the state and country. We meet as a team to host workshops and readings to spread writing across New Hampshire high schools,” Kim explained. 

Kim’s time at Exeter has also been cemented into core memories with her close friends. “I remember prep spring, we sat on Swasey while the sun set and we watched the ducks swim in the river and it was really nice. I think that’s definitely a moment that cemented Lauren as one of my core Exeter friends,” Lee fondly remembered. 

Park shares a similar anecdote of Kim and her in Swasey Park. “During our lower year spring term, Lauren and I went to Swasey Parkway’s Thursday farmer’s market when it was beautiful outside. We spent the whole afternoon at the park tanning, eating snow cones, and watching people perform.”

“My top favorite memories would have to be from going on my spring break vacation with her and some other friends to Mexico,” Zhao said. “It was really fun to watch her attempts at speaking Spanish even though she wasn’t the best at it. It was also nice to just relax with her without the stresses of school. I felt that we got somehow even closer through it.” 

Delcid recalls a lively dinner night out in town with Kim, where Kim blasted Megan Thee Stallion as they sprinted to their reservation at Il Cornicello in heels. “We ate dinner and we got a bunch of appetizers. I spent all my life savings on that meal. We ate a lot, we ordered everything we wanted, and we dished a bit. And it was on the school night too, so it felt kind of rebellious, but it was fun.” 

A valuable lesson Kim had learnt during her time at Exeter was to embrace the things she was hesitant or doubtful about. “If someone asks you to sit in Grill with them or if someone asks you to come watch this show with them, I’ve always tried to say yes and sometimes it has led to me being extremely over-committed. I’ll have some days where I just have back-to-back meetings, but I think in the end it’s genuinely so worth it because you get to like, talk to such amazing and dedicated people and every meeting that you have here is just so impactful,” Kim shared. 

As the curtains are closing in the Bowld and Kim prepares to take her final bow, Kim has become more grounded while still maintaining the same enthusiasm for things as she did the first time. “I think throughout my time here I’ve just become a more mature and grounded person, but I still maintain that excitement for new experiences I had as a prep. I’ve learned to manage my time really well, collaborate with almost anyone, and prioritise what’s best for me in the end. At the same time, I’ve really grown to love the things I do and have actually developed a sense for what I might want to do later.” 

Kim’s all-time favorite book is Life of Pi by Yanni Martel, a philosophical novel following an antagonist named Pi, who survives 500 days on the Pacific with a tiger named Richard Parker. The book ends with a decision to make— to choose whether or not to believe that Richard Parker was really on the boat with Pi. In a way, Kim’s journey as Exeter has stemmed from all the choices she has made, and Kim hopes that she has made the most out of her time here. “Exeter is unfulfilling if you don’t take the opportunities right in front of you, and I hope I’ve taken advantage of these opportunities the best I could’ve,” Kim remarked. As Kim rises to the audience’s rapturous standing ovation for one last time in the Bowld, it really seems like she has— her story is truly one that the Exeter community has come together for.