King Tercek
With ice axes gripped in his hands, senior Rex Tercek scales a frozen cliff in Ouray, Colo. Chunks of ice falling below his feet and some crashing into his climbing helmet, Tercek inches toward the top.
Most Exonians are pretty cool, but Tercek—as the paragraph above should have clarified by now—is exceptionally cool; he ice climbs.
Ice climbing, however, is just a tiny piece of Tercek that completes him. From contributing to The Exonian as a News Editor to leading the boys’ varsity squash and tennis teams as their captain, Tercek has been an invaluable member of the Academy community throughout out his Exeter career; he is, inarguably, a quintessential Exonian.
Since he first arrived on campus four years ago, Tercek sought to enrich his life at Exeter by immediately immersing into new activities and joining new clubs. In the process of trying out new things, he joined the Student Council, The Exonian, Big Red Blog, the symphony orchestra, and more.
“His humor and smile are disarming and he never fails to make my day whenever I see him.”
“Over the years, I picked up various clubs or activities because they were fun,” Tercek said. “For example, I don’t plan on becoming a journalist, but when I first wrote an article my prep year, I had a blast, so I kept on doing it. As a result, I had some of the most fun and met some of the coolest people by becoming a member of The Exonian board.”
Aside from his extracurricular activities, Tercek is also an avid scholar. Whether it’s genetics or Latin, he has been a successful and diligent student in countless subjects at Exeter. He particularly noted his experience with Exeter’s classics program.
“Classics at Exeter are incredible. It’s rare to find a department that will always offer you a class to learn in, even if you are the only student, and I think I have taken full advantage of that,” Tercek said.
Working in a two man class, Tercek has taken two terms of 600s Latin—a level few Exonians reach—and has read Roman comedies and a dramatic history of Claudius. Tercek emphasized that classics at Exeter has been a successful choice and a privilege.
“There are few high schools, if any, where you can learn with just one other student and a teacher—debating, thinking, and analyzing the Latin. So I really attribute my love for the classics to Exeter.”
Additionally, Tercek said that Exeter allowed him to discover his passion for the sciences, specifically genetics. Senior Yena Cho, who first became acquainted with Tercek during their prep spring bio class described Tercek as one of the most passionate, hard-working classmates; she also noted his “amazing bio puns.”
“He added life to what could have been a very dull class,” Cho said.
After studying molecular genetics and taking an experimental genetics course (Bio 470) before working at one of Stanford University’s labs during an internship this past summer, Tercek said that he owes his passion to Exeter.
“The puzzle-like nature of genetics, all the little ‘a-ha!’ moments made it feel not even like school,” Tercek said.“I could work endlessly on whatever it was we were learning at the time. Now, I’m thinking of pursuing synthetic biology in college. I don’t know if I would be saying that if I hadn’t gone to Exeter.”
Postgraduate Michael Kacergis, Tercek’s teammate and classmate, said that he has always been impressed by Tercek’s dedication to academics.
“He’s a genius academically,” Kacergis said. “My first impressions of Rex was that he was a bit nerdy, and I was wrong: he’s a huge nerd.”
Tercek’s diligence and dedication extends to the squash and tennis courts as well. Senior and Tercek’s teammate Senior Will Ettinger, Tercek’s teammate, said that Tercek’s work ethic is unmatched and revered.
“You might say that Rex is just a sweaty person, but I think he’s just got a sweaty heart—deep down he is always drenched because he is trying harder than everyone else, and you can see that off court as well as on,” Ettinger said.
Senior Torrey Foster echoed Ettinger’s sentiments.
“I first met Rex on the tennis team our prep year and since then, he has become one of closest teammates, and most importantly, one of my closest friends,” Foster said. “I admire his commitment to excellence and his constant pursuit of perfection in all aspects of life.”
Apart from his strengths and talents as a leader, scholar and athlete, Tercek is also respected and appreciated by his peers for his geniality and empathy.
Prep Makinrola Orafidiya said that Tercek, a proctor of Webster Hall, has always been a compassionate and supportive friend. “He’s got a great sense of humor, and always says hi to me. I’ve also never seen Rex not smiling before. He’s extremely welcoming and humble,” Orafidiya said.
Kacergis agreed and said that Tercek has been a source of positivity during his first year at Exeter. “He has so many great qualities. He’s a great student, a great leader and a great athlete, but his ability to make everyone smile is his best quality in my opinion,” Kacergis said.
Senior Tommy Song, one of Tercek’s friends, said that it’s rare to come across people like Tercek, an individual who is simultaneously impressively compassionate and incredibly humorous.
“I have yet to meet someone who rivals Rex’s jokes and personality. His humor and smile are disarming and he never fails to make my day whenever I see him,” Song said.
After Exeter, Tercek plans to take a gap year to journey across the globe. After visiting Yosemite this summer, Tercek said that he was inspired to travel more. He will be volunteering at a research station on Palmyra Atoll, an island 1,000 miles south of Hawaii. His work will include coral exploration, ecosystem mapping and other similar projects.
After the three months on the island, he hopes to work at a lab nearby Boston or San Francisco to focus on gene-editing and synthetic biology then spend several months hiking the Te Araroa, a trail that covers the longest stretch through New Zealand. He added that during the winter months of his gap year, he may revisit Ouray, Colo. for another round of ice climbing.