Interview conducted by Samana S.
Samana: Hi Eileen! Welcome to your Seniors of CPS Interview! How are you doing today?
Eileen: I’m doing well, thank you!
Samana: We’re going to start with a rapid fire round of questions. First, Gym Deck or Student Commons?
Eileen: Curveball: Music Lawn!
Samana: Favorite Trader Joe’s snack?
Eileen: Trader Joe’s Fake Takis. I love them so much that they even make a special appearance in my college essays.
Samana: Freshman Physics or Asian Worlds?
Eileen: Freshman Physics.
Samana: Favorite department at CPS?
Eileen: I love chatting with my past English teachers about what we’re currently reading for fun, and English class is where I feel most in my element. So I’d have to say English Department for the vibes and conversation, but Science Department takes the cake for the most patient, phenomenal teachers and also the comfiest office. I think those are the two subjects that have stretched me the most during my time at CPS.
Samana: What’s been your favorite CPS class and why?
Eileen: I’d have to say that Dr. Rainof’s Coming of Age English seminar was hands down one of my favorite classes I’ve ever taken. In my opinion, there are three things that go into a good class: the teacher, the subject matter, and the students. I lucked out on all three of those in Coming of Age – Dr. Rainof is the most amazing and kind teacher, and I also really liked the novels we read. My entire class happened to be just juniors, so it was nice to have some class bonding time too. One of my favorite memories from that class was when my friend and I performed a Pride and Prejudice rap set to a Hamilton karaoke track.
Samana: What’s something that not a lot of people at CPS know about you?
Eileen: I love listening to music! I listen to pretty much everything under the sun, and I spend way too much time making Spotify playlists. Right now, I’ve been listening to salsa a lot, but I also like everything from jazz to indie to Reggaetón to R&B. I love being on AUX when I’m in the car with my friends, and I also love supplying hype music when we’re in the Dance Studio getting ready for shows.
Samana: Cool! Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Eileen: I don’t know exactly, but I hope that I’m happy and confident in my next steps. I’m very tentatively thinking about pursuing nursing and also English, so we’ll see if either of those pan out! Whatever I end up doing, I hope that it’s something to do with helping people.
Samana: What’s one of your favorite CPS memories?
Eileen: I will never forget going on the San Miguel de Allende Intraterm. I actually wasn’t planning to do it – I’d gotten into an argument with my mom and only put it on my list to be petty. I was also really nervous about my Spanish and I didn’t really know anyone on the trip. But it was honestly such a magical, surreal experience. Even though everyone on the Intraterm came from different grades and friend groups, we were all friends by the end. I was feeling really burned out at the time that I went, but the preschool we volunteered at was a world completely removed from the pressure cooker of junior year. The school is the most amazing, joyful place, and the kids are so sweet! On the last day, we had an impromptu dance party, and it honestly felt like something out of a movie. I loved it so much that I’m leading the trip again this year with one of my friends from last year!
Samana: If you could give advice to your freshman year self, what would it be?
Eileen: I saw something recently that said, “The grass is always greener when you water it.” My advice is to focus on your own growth and try not to compare yourself with others. I struggled a lot with this in the past, especially in freshman year, when I was still finding my place at CPS. I constantly felt like I didn’t measure up to my classmates, both academically and outside of the classroom, when in reality I was doing much better than I thought. In the end, learning – and honestly, life – are both such personal journeys and so different for everybody that it’s really unproductive and draining to be comparing your situation with someone else’s. Good things happen when you water your own garden.
Samana: If you could say thank you to one room at CPS, which would it be and why?
Eileen: This might be a weird one, especially since I don’t play sports, but the girls' locker rooms. Over four years at CPS, I’ve had some wild ups and downs, and sometimes when I need some quiet time away from people, I go there at lunch to think.
Samana: What are you known for at CPS?
Eileen: I think at this point, I’m pretty well known for being a Taiwan Club leader. I actually didn’t know a lot about my cultural identity until I came to CPS and saw how much people value and take pride in their identities and cultures. I had a bit of an identity crisis and spent a lot of time doing research and asking my parents about our family history to educate myself about my culture. I also started intentionally speaking more Mandarin at home. Now, I’m really proud of where my people came from and I feel really happy that I can share that knowledge with the rest of our community, because it means so much to me.
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