Senior Spotlight: Kyle Peng

Kyle Peng attended a public school in California with more than 4000 students before transferring to Sage Ridge in the middle of his junior year. The transition was a bit of a shock, especially because he was distance learning for the first few months and was known only to his teachers and peers through the square on the screen. Kyle heard the voices of his peers in the classroom for several months before meeting any of them in person. While it was an unconventional way to change schools, Kyle was relieved to find that students at Sage Ridge were friendly and welcoming, and that teachers paid a lot of attention to each student. 

Kyle is known to be a man of few words. Mr. Johnson, his math teacher, noticed how diligent a student he was from the beginning. Clearly an intellectual thinker, Kyle most often played a listening role in his classes. Another aspect of his transition to Sage Ridge, however, was moving from the independent mindset he had developed in his larger public school to asking questions of his teachers. Mr. Johnston remarks that Kyle’s effort to be an excellent math student started to include explaining things to the class, coming in before school to talk about math, and becoming more involved. Kyle credits the Sage Ridge environment for helping him develop the ability to ask for advice or help.

As Kyle reflects on his time at Sage Ridge, he realizes that he didn’t care too much about social circumstances at school before he became a Scorpion. Something changed, he realized, during this year’s Outdoor Ed trip to Tamales Bay. Being a part of such a close-knit class inspired him to care more about the community of the Class of 2022. Kyle credits classmate Ngoc Tran for “insisting” that Kyle join the circle of seniors sitting in a circle outside each lunch period. Having had an opportunity to get to know Kyle better as the year went on, Ngoc shared that “He exemplifies all five pillars even though he doesn’t think he does.”  When asked about his advice for younger students, Kyle recommends that students “have the courage to accept invitations” and get to know peers and teachers at Sage Ridge. 

Kyle was deemed “most likely to be the next tech giant” on his senior paper plate award. He has a passion for computer science, and he especially enjoys being creative within the constraints of a limited system. For his senior thesis, Kyle explored cryptocurrency and its effects on the world. He wondered how cryptocurrency transactions will continue after bitcoin reaches its market cap and how cryptocurrency mining will impact the environment. Kyle is headed to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology to study computer science at the next level, and we have every confidence in him and his future.