LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Emma Figert has an attitude we can all learn from: don’t be afraid to try new things.
Like all our High School Scholars, the senior at Sacred Heart in Louisville is a star student, with a 4.0 GPA in the challenging International Baccalaureate curriculum.
"Academics matter to me because I think it's the foundation for almost everything," she said. "(To be) a good citizen, you have to have a good foundation in history. You have to understand what made past governments and situations successful and unsuccessful. And I think other classes, like biology, are really important to me because I want to maybe pursue something in health care or medicine."
"It's very easy to make it important when I care so much about it and when it really just interests me.”
But it’s what she does outside the classroom that makes her unique.
"I think a big part of me is trying things out and seeing what works," she said. "I feel like I don't have a lot of like fear or hesitation when it comes to trying new things. And because I do that, it exposes me to a lot of different perspectives and opportunities, and I get to find what I really like and what really motivates me and makes me feel passionate.
Among those opportunities are bowling. When she was a freshman, her high school team was at risk of folding because it didn’t have enough players. Despite no prior experience, she joined to save the squad, later becoming captain and an All-Region bowler. She'll now play the sport at the Division I level at Tulane University.
"Once I started, I just couldn't stop," Figert said. "I've never been a part of a team like that or anything, and I think I just really enjoyed the dynamic of us all supporting each other and being there for each other."
"I had never thought that I would even join a bowling team, let alone become captain and continue trying to pursue it outside of Sacred Heart. So I'm glad I went out there and took a risk.”
She went off the beaten path again when she founded the school’s Dungeons and Dragons Club, and this was before the hit TV show "Stranger Things" made the game popular.
Figert acts as the Dungeon Master.
“One thing I really like about my community is we are nerds," she said. "I'm not afraid to do things that are nerdy or maybe not fit the status quo of what a high school girl should do.”
She’s also an accomplished singer with the school’s Madrigal Choir.
On top of all her extra-curricular activities, she still finds time for extensive participation in community service. She said giving back is critical.
“I think that if you make it about yourself, you're not going to be happy," Figert said. "Community is one of Sacred Heart's core values, and it's one of my personal core values. I think feeling connected to the community around you is one of the most important things in life, and I think service is an excellent way to do it."
"I think if you're not helping the people in your community who need it, then I don't think I personally could feel satisfied going to sleep, and I couldn't relax. I guess I couldn't feel happy without knowing that I'm at least trying to help people in need.”
She’s been on the Sacred Heart Service Honor Roll each year of high school and volunteers weekly at Norton Hospital. As part of that effort, she earned her Girl Scout Bronze and Silver Awards by building and painting stools so parents of children in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) would have a place to sit.
"These parents have just gone through some of the most exhausting moments of probably their entire life," she said. "They probably want to be able to sit down and hold their kid. So that one, I think, made the biggest impact on me.”
The hospital is also where her future may lie. Her mother is a surgeon, and Figert said she's considering following in her footsteps in the medical field. She’s taken summer programs in surgery, health care and biomedical engineering.
“I think that growing up, seeing her make such big impacts on all the lives around her every day made an impact on me," Figert said. "I want to be that person. I want to be someone who can help people no matter what they're going through in life.”
Marie Griffin, her Spanish teacher, lauds her ability to lead.
"She is someone who is very present, not only in the classroom but also in her relationships with peers and other adults," Griffin said. "One of the things that Emma exceeds at is being able to see the big picture and having an open mind."
"The way that she relates to people is in a really non-judgy way, and she feels comfortable with herself and she also is very accepting of others. I think that is a very particular trait that is hard to find in a lot of teenagers.”
Taking a chance—and making a difference. That combination makes Emma Figert a deserving High School Scholar.