Brooke has a curiosity for learning that has kept him up late at night under the spell of a good book and, now, earned him admission to the Johns Hopkins University Class of 2029. It started with a love of literature and the humanities, but his passions drifted into the sciences and specifically public health – which Brooke feels is at the intersection between humanities and STEM. It’s thanks to Collingwood’s personalized approach to learning that he was able to study a breadth of subjects and find his perfect fit.

Brooke had an early aptitude for math, but wasn’t interested in making it his core focus in high school. Instead, he wanted to get math out of the way so he could take courses like human geography, life sciences, and physics. Taking AP Calculus BC in Grade 10 freed up some time so he could take what he wanted: Mr. Fox’s Anatomy and Physiology class. From there, he jumped head first into the Medical Diagnosis Club where he led a case study for the Gr. 9 Science classes, which asked students to study clues and patient charts to determine a mystery illness. As a Gr. 11 student working with younger classmates, Brooke was proud to watch them collaborate, investigate, and question their way to the final answer. 

The collaborative nature of a science lab is akin to how Collingwood approaches post-secondary planning with students: observe, research, hypothesize, experiment, interpret, and make a conclusion. For Brooke, this started in Gr. 8 with his University Guidance Counsellor, Mr. Payne. Together, the two determined Brooke’s passions and began choosing courses that aligned. Each course, co-curricular, or opportunity was an experiment and Brooke was the chief investigator. His original hypothesis about where he would go after high school (pre-law at a Canadian university) was proven false. 

Once he knew that life sciences was what he wanted to pursue, Brooke worked with Mr. Payne who was able to recommend suitable schools. Johns Hopkins has one of the worlds’ most preeminent public health schools – the Bloomberg School of Public Health – and undergraduates have the opportunity to take courses there. This appealed to Brooke, along with Johns Hopkins’ flexibility that allows students to take a broad variety of courses while determining their unique pathway. Brooke also plans to take courses in their Writing Seminars Department, which is the second oldest creative writing program in the US. He was laser focused on JHU and applied for their ‘Early Decision’ entry – and got in.

“Mr. Payne was an incredibly accessible and knowledgeable resource for the entire process [of selecting a school], from narrowing down school lists to giving feedback on my application,” Brooke says. “But I also want to acknowledge that the University Guidance department isn’t alone in supporting students achieve success after graduation – every teacher that I’ve interacted with has shared that same goal.”

Brooke felt this support from his Debate Team coaches, who inspired him to teach students the art of public speaking and debate; his AP Seminar teacher who helped edit his university application essays; and Mr. Murray, who allowed him to lead engaging activities with his Science 9 classes. 

“The larger principles that I hope to live by are pragmatism, precision, and empathy. I only know of these qualities because I’ve seen them demonstrated to me first-hand. And I hope, after I’ve left Collingwood, that I’ve been able to impart a small aspect of that on the community and the people in it,” Brooke says.

Mr. Payne’s conclusion is that Brooke has indeed impacted his community. 

“Brooke is a student who is going to accomplish amazing things in life. With his passion for helping others and putting others before himself, he is the perfect person to go into a public health program and thrive,” says Mr. Payne. “One of the stories that stood out to me is that Brooke had opportunities to go to major debate and speaking competitions, but decided that he wanted to spend his love for public speaking helping others. And so, he began teaching and coaching younger students to help them with their confidence.”

This fall, Brooke will bring his ability to research and analyze, and lead with empathy, to Johns Hopkins. Even though he’s studying public health, he hasn’t given up on his love for the humanities – in fact, Brooke’s big dream is to write a novel one day. We can’t wait to read it!