Giselle Garcia

December 17, 2017

Giselle Garcia is a senior at St. Mary’s High School in Phoenix.  She started there as a freshman after her parents had heard great things about the school and with the help of a scholarship from the Arizona Leadership Foundation.   She admits she was not a fan of the idea of changing schools and leaving friends but now feels that coming to St. Mary’s was the best decision her family ever made.

She says that one of her favorite things about St. Mary’s is the size of the school.  Giselle says “It took only a couple of months to get to know most of the school, the whole school is like a family.”   Her father, Rafael Garcia, also commented to Giselle, “I’ve never heard of another school like St. Mary’s. No one ever rushes home after school, everyone just likes to spend time together.”   Giselle says that what she loves most about St. Mary’s is the family-like environment.   It really feels like all of the students are very supportive of each other and the teachers and faculty are very easy to talk to and form a relationship with.

Giselle’s favorite subject is science.   During her junior year she took college biology and really enjoyed the course.   They have labs every other week, one of them being frog dissections.  Giselle wants to be the first person from her immediate family to graduate from college.  So far, she has not decided where she will go, but would like to study science and be a pre-medicine major.  When she gets older she wants to be a pediatrician at the Phoenix Children’s Hospital.   In addition, she dreams of volunteering with the Red Cross and traveling to third world countries to help those in need.

Before switching to St. Mary’s, she says was not the type of student to be involved at school.  The inviting atmosphere at St. Mary’s helps students find an extracurricular activity that they love.  Giselle feels fortunate to have found so many clubs and sports that she loves to participate in.  She is currently on the varsity cheer and pom team, a captain of the varsity soccer team, the senior class vice president, secretary for both National Honors Society and Ambassadors Club, and a member of the Blood Drive committee.

Giselle’s family is so thankful for the generous donations from the Arizona Leadership Foundation which has allowed her to attend St. Mary’s for high school. “I am very grateful for having had the opportunity to attend a school as special at St. Mary’s. Not only have they given me a great education, but they have been tirelessly preparing their students for the real world, spiritually and mentally,” commented Giselle.  “I would not have become the person I am today without St. Mary’s and I cannot thank ALF enough for helping me with my future.”