Sincere-Lee, Jay

T

he clock flashes 4:00 AM. Senior Jay Lee shuts the lid of his laptop; the long paragraphs of his 333 disappear along with the screen’s dim glow. To his side, Senior Benjamin Cohen lies spread across Lee’s bed, chuckling as he taps at the game on his iPad. At this point, most Exonians would mumble about needing to sleep. Lee hops onto the bed and joins Cohen, the two laughing and talking together for the next hour. Lee’s perfect balance of diligence and jubilance is what defines him as a great Exonian.

Before Exeter, Lee attended the Horace Mann School, a prestigious day school in New York. His father was constantly moving between the United States and Korea for work, and Lee decided to research boarding schools, as a way to stay in America for high school. He was immediately attracted to Exeter as his next academic pursuit and entered his prep year excited. It wouldn’t be until four years later, however, for him to “know exactly why [he] decided to come to Exeter.”

While Lee found Horace Mann academically comparable to Exeter, what distinguishes his time here are the events that have shaped him.

According to Lee, the people around him, especially in his dorm, Cilley, catalyzed his maturing. However, it was Exeter that was the first place Lee experienced criticism from people his own age. Initially, he found it difficult to respond to, but as time went on, he “started to realize that these kids were telling me all this because they truly cared for me and wished the best for me,” Lee said.

Over time, Lee explained that learning to listen to and grow from criticism has shaped and bettered him. Charlie Boyd ‘14, a good friend of Lee, said Lee received the moniker of a “try-hard” upon coming to Exeter. However, Boyd emphasized that while a “try-hard” is “someone who works solely for the purpose of the grade,” Lee evolved into a student who “began focusing on what he was drawn towards.”

Lee is a student continually praised for commitment and passion by teachers and friends alike. But every passion for him provides an area for growth. Piano Instructor Isao Jonathan Sakata emphasizes the meandering ways of creativity, and how it is deeply intertwined with the study of piano. Sakata said one of the most important lessons Lee has learned is how to follow creativity as he plays, instead of a more direct and literal path.

“The joy and challenge in teaching Lee over his career here has been to keep availing to him that he must not fall back upon what he knows… but to keep extending, expanding, and reaching for greater depth and specificity,” Sakata said.

Despite his teacher’s critiques, Lee continues to grow as a virtuosic, young musician. Fellow senior Sam Yoo described Lee as not only a “natural musician,” but as someone who spends “countless hours” practicing, hours that “propel him forward and keep him improving, allowing him to become an even been musician day by day.”

Lee said that every hour he spends playing the piano, “is an opportunity for me to immerse myself into the music and step away from the world for a moment,” and he names it as one of his two largest passions at Exeter, the other being his work for The Exonian.

While he joined the paper during his first year, Lee was not an active contributor at first. But after attending a journalism conference the following summer that started a passion for reporting, he became a far more active participant. He quickly rose to a lower board member, and gained the position of Managing Editor as a part of the 136th Executive Board.

Senior and former co-Managing Editor Amanda Hu, admired the clear passion Lee had for his work. “Working with him on The Exonian was a great experience because of this very passion he has for the paper,” she said.

English Instructor and The Exonian adviser Erica Plouffe Lazure said that Lee was always combatting any problem as they arose, never hesitating to reach out to a writer or fellow staff member to remedy the issue. She saw Lee as a model member of the Executive Board. “Jay absolutely was a person that I had full confidence in,” she said.

The 136th Board has now turned over, and Lee is the only member of the previous board not abroad. He has stayed involved in the editorial transition. For Lee, all the work has been worth his while. “I can gladly say that joining The Exonian was the one of the greatest decisions I made at Exeter,” he said.

While many Exonian editors noted Lee on his great leadership skills, his ability to influence  others isn’t limited to the newsroom. Lee serves as a proctor in Cilley and challenges himself to replicate the guidance he received from his proctors.

Upper David Larar commented on the great bonding experiences and advice Lee provided for him and his fellow dorm mates.

“Not only is Jay the handsomest Squidward I have ever seen, he’s a good dorm mate and a proctor who is always looking out for us,” Larar said. “He’s made all the kids on the second floor really close, and although I live on the first floor, he still comes down to hang out with us.”

Cohen agreed with Larar, noting Lee’s fun and friendly characteristics.

“The best part about Jay’s personality is that he is really fun to be around at all times. He is super caring and is always there if you want to talk, hang out, joke around, or even if you need help with math,” Cohen said. “His personality and his enthusiasm for life is quite contagious. When you’re around him you just get happy, because he’s happy.”

Through his easy-going personality, Lee has created lifetime friendships with dorm mates such as Larar, Cohen and also Boyd, who all have commented on their close relationship.

“After five French classes together, a ridiculous amount of hours playing FIFA in my room and eating all of his Asian food on the countless nights we talked past midnight, I can't really nail down what it is about Jay, beyond the fact that we can always laugh and be ourselves with the worry of judgement or censure,” Boyd said. “I guess I just love him like a brother now.”

Lee’s development at Exeter has been dramatic. While he entered a strong student, he has managed to mature as a student, friend, and leader. Now, Jay realizes what made Exeter so special for him: the “priceless experiences.”