A Guiding Force: Fairfield Star Student

FAIRFIELD, CT — Star Students are found in classrooms, on concert and theater stages and at debate lecterns, and out in the community doing good things to make life better for all of us.

Here at Patch, we've launched an initiative to help recognize Star Students, and we’re working to tell the stories of these outstanding kids to their neighbors.

This submission comes from MaryAnne who nominated Mia, a 12th grader, of Fairfield. MaryAnne is Mia's mother.

Star local student’s name

Mia, 12th grade

Star local student’s home state

Connecticut

How do you know the star local student?

I am her very proud mother!

Why do you believe the star local student should be recognized?

Mia is enviably goal oriented; when she sets her mind on accomplishing something, she works until she achieves it. Her organization and time management skills have been finely honed in the past 4 years at Lauralton Hall in Milford, CT. The skills she has acquired during her time at Lauralton have assisted her to be able to take extremely challenging courseloads while maintaining her physical and mental health though sports and enjoying time with her friends.
During the past 2 years, Mia has endured two very extensive surgeries and painful and challenging recoveries. She has had to truly “dig deep” in order to get through these times mentally and physically. Balancing her recovery while still maintaining her coursework was a great challenge... but one that with persistence… and a few tears… she managed to get through. As she currently heals from the last of her two surgeries, she is aware of the challenge ahead of her as well as what she has accomplished thus far in her recovery. We continued to be amazed at her progress in such a short period of time. This time around, she knew what challenges lay ahead and set a schedule for herself in order to maintain her progress.

I think my daughter’s most significant contribution to Lauralton Hall or her community has been becoming a peer mentor. In my opinion, this has been one of Mia’s most important contributions to the Lauralton Hall community. As an underclassman, she found the support and advice from her Peer Mentors to be extremely valuable. As a Peer Mentor, I believe you are a guiding force to those underclassmen that are struggling academically, mentally, or socially. She has taken such pride in her role as a Peer Mentor… assisting, advising, and taking under “her wing” many underclassmen. Whether in school or out of school…at sporting events…on the weekends or late at night… the power of a kind word, a shoulder to cry on or an ear to listen… even just via a quick text or phone call…whatever the person reaching out needs. She takes this role seriously and knows that her predecessors helped her become the wonderful Peer Mentor she has become today.

What's one thing you want everyone to know about the star local student?

Mia is our oldest child… the trial child… she would be our first for everything… good and bad. Mia has always been a self-motivated child. We never needed to promise her the sun, moon, and stars for her to do well in school… she just wanted to. As parents, we would sit in one parent teacher conference after another listening to how wonderful our child was doing academically and how well she behaved and followed the rules.

We really wanted to take credit for our incredible parenting skills… but we couldn’t… we didn’t do it. We read with her and did puzzles and talked to her like a person (not a baby) and helped her learn her letters... but we really couldn’t take credit for all that this child was capable of... what she has accomplished. To this day, we are amazed at her ability to focus on her schoolwork, talk to her friends, work for spending money… juggling it all… accomplishing it all… and smiling through it…there are truly no prouder parents… and I don’t even thinks she truly understands how proud.

Congratulations on your achievements, and all of our best wishes to you in the future, Mia, a 12th grader at Lauralton Hall!

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