Michael Garcia

With a welcoming smile and a kind word for everyone he meets, senior Michael Garcia leaves a strong impression on the Exeter community as a caring, warm and diligent person who is always open to conversation. Few of Garcia’s peers realize he has only been a member of the Exeter community for two years, given his intense involvement in Dance Company, Model UN, PEAN and academic life.

Garcia applied to Exeter after his sophomore year at an all-boys boarding school because of the academic rigor and the approachable environment. “In my time here, I’ve been able to meet a lot of people who are very kind and genuinely care about others,” Garcia said.

Transitioning to a new school, Garcia did not shy away from pursuing his lifelong interests as well as trying out new things. “I started dancing in first grade and have done it for 10 years, though I did not spend a lot of time on dance during freshman and sophomore year because my old school did not have it,” he said.

Once at Exeter, he decided to attend a master’s class by renowned West African dancer Youssouf Koumbassa, where he met Allison Duke, PEA’s theater and dance instructor. “She talked to me and reeled me into the program,” Garcia recalled. During upper winter, he tried out for Dance Company, and has been working with the group ever since.

“[Garcia’s] choreography is very creative, and he’s not afraid to experiment with new things during rehearsals,” said fellow dancer and upper Katrina Schmitt. She added that not only is he a gifted dancer and choreographer, but he encourages everyone to do better by coming in with a smile everyday and cheering people on during warmup. “I’ll miss dancing with Michael next year!” Schmitt added.

Model United Nations (MUN) is another interest that Garcia carried over from his old school, where he helped to create their first-ever MUN club. He appreciates the intensity and dedication that Exeter MUN members exhibit, while also admitting that he initially felt very intimidated, having not done as well as expected in the first conference at Andover.

“I remember calling my mom in a disheartened state after getting up at 6 a.m. for the conference and not winning anything,” Garcia shared. However, he kept going to conferences throughout his upper and senior year out of sheer passion and ended up winning Best Delegate three times in a row at Cornell, Boston University and Harvard MUN, three of the hardest conferences in the circuit.

With one of the most remarkable performances in recent Exeter MUN history, Garcia joined the club’s Upper Board last spring, and has since contributed to turning it into a more welcoming community for members of all experience levels.

“Michael had something unique to bring MUN. The club used to perpetuate the idea that you have to be ‘a snake’ to win awards; he tore down that notion because he showed that friendship is the best way to advance in any committee,” said Mark Blekherman, President of MUN. He also appreciated how, as Director of Training, Garcia made time to schedule one-on-one meetings with younger members before their first multi-day conference to go over any concerns they might have.

Garcia’s genuine kindness also shows through in his role as  proctor in Will House, one of the two all-gender dorms on campus. “He is a lovely, accepting, generous person who has helped to make Will House a warm environment for everyone,” Garcia’s dorm head, Christina Breen, said. “He’s the person everyone gravitates towards when they’re having difficult times.”

Describing him as “the embodiment of diligence,” Breen further commended Garcia’s work ethic. “He gets up at 6 a.m. to lifeguard three times every week and takes the hardest courses he can,” she said. “Michael is one of those people who quietly ploughs on and does Exeter very well.”

One of the many rigorous courses that Garcia enjoyed was the History 600 Senior Research Seminar this past fall. The course, which allows seniors to take on a term-long research project, caught Garcia’s interest his upper year with the idea that he would be able to explore the topics he is passionate about. With approval, Garcia chose to research LGBTQ+ rights in the UN, a topic he found empowering.

“[Writing the paper] was liberating in ways not ascribed to the same restrictions you are in single-sex schools,” said Garcia. Through the unique course option, Garcia felt that he was able to gain a deeper understanding of the idea of freedom from definitions and labels.

Before considering the History 600 course, Garcia spent his upper year working to be a STEM-focused student. Garcia took the AP Chemistry and the Stanford-Exeter fruit fly genetics courses, but then found a passion through his History 331 class. “I loved my 331 class with [history instructor Michael] Golay. I never approached history in the way that excited me and by senior year I loved humanities,” said Garcia.

Garcia believes his Exeter journey is a lesson for his future. “In class, I learned how to approach issues, texts and ideas is important for navigating the complexities of society today,” said Garcia. “Having that self-awareness in what I do, whether that means being in tune with my artistic expression in dance or my identity in the all-gender dorm [or] aware or the way I carry myself, I am most powerful.”