Latin School of Chicago

Latin Magazine Winter 2020

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Latin Ties Since its founding, 141 High Jump alumni have attended Latin, with 25 currently enrolled. Paul Trussell '98, was in Cohort 4 during the program's early years, when each cohort was only about 20 students. He graduated from the University of Illinois in 2002 with a B.S. in finance and currently serves as managing director of Deutsche Bank in New York. Trussell found High Jump to be eye-opening for him. "I saw very quickly that there were folks in the same situation as me," he said. Many kids in the program were bright but were not being challenged at their home schools. He liked how his fellow students pushed each other in group projects. Trussell has fond memories of playing basketball in the lower school rooftop gym during free time. He remembers losing a bet to the other seventh grade section, where the losing basketball team would have to do a dance performance of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in the cafeteria at lunch in front of all the High Jump students. "I was so nervous, so I just closed my eyes and started dancing. I realized after a few minutes all the other students had bailed on me. But I just kept going. And I got a standing ovation at the end." Trussell said that the experience was the first time he was on stage, and he realized he had the confidence to speak and perform in front of others. Trussell grew up in the Chatham neighborhood and was set to attend St. Ignatius College Prep, but he was encouraged to apply to Latin. When he received financial aid, he changed his mind. "I'm still thankful for the experience: High Jump changed my trajectory," he said. While at Latin, he served as a math teaching assistant his sophomore year, a paid position, according to Pietrini. "We only hire alumni for near-peer mentorship. Alumni in the role is something that really makes High Jump unique," Pietrini said. Derrick McAllister '16 is from a more recent class, Cohort 22. He relished the academic rigor of High Jump. "It was the first time in my life when I was surrounded by kids who loved learning just as much as I did." McAllister, who is African American, felt right at home with the diversity of students. "I didn't feel like an 'other.' The other kids looked like me." In fact, the program is 44 percent Hispanic and 40 percent African-American students, along with 9 percent Asian and 5 percent multiracial students. Currently a senior at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY, McAllister is a true polyglot, speaking five languages, which he attributes to High Jump and Latin. "Latin allowed me the opportunity to take my first two overseas trips, one to Madrid during Project Week and one to Finland," he said. FOR EVERY YEAR IN HIGH JUMP, A STUDENT WILL MAKE A TWO-YEAR GAIN IN MATH AND READING. Dr. Nate Pietrini High Jump marketing materials from 1994 show Paul Trussell (black suit and tie, center right) receiving his certificate of completion from High Jump at the Moving Up Ceremony. 28

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