Wilton High School rising senior Grace Schaller was recently named by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as a Rensselaer Medalist. The award recognizes her achievements in math and science.
“Before WHS, math, was just another subject. It was her experience sophomore year in math that changed all that for her, to her (and my) surprise,” says Grace’s mom, Susan Schaller. “Since then the teachers she’s had have completely changed her attitude, she fell in love with math because of the terrific math teachers at WHS.”
During this past year as a junior, Grace took both AP Chemistry and AP Calculus BC. According to Susan, Grace is the first student at WHS who skipped from Analysis 2 in sophomore year to do a double override into AP Calculus BC. “To do that, she had to teach herself Precalculus last summer by taking an online course and taking graded proctored exams. She’s doing great and will take Multivariable calculus as a senior,” Susan says.
After graduating in 2017, Grace plans to major in physics and is considering a co-major with mathematics. While the award doesn’t necessarily guarantee acceptance to Rensselaer, it does come with a minimum of $100,000 in scholarship funds and students can receive a full scholarship.
Students interested in learning more about how to become eligible for the Rensselaer Prize should contact WHS guidance counselors.