Summer Journal: Sylvie Dow ’25

9/13/2024

By Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00, Head of Community Engagement

Immersive, engaging summer academic experience balances busy performing arts schedule

What do digitizing historical archives, the harp and the Science Museum of Virginia have in common? They were all highlights of Sylvie Dow’s ’25 busy summer.

Last year, Dow applied to and was accepted into the Virginia Governor’s School for Visual and Performing Arts and Humanities. This four-week summer program, hosted at Radford University, allowed Dow to explore history, government and psychology — all topics she loves — while getting the “college experience.” She and classmate Grayson Buelow ’26 were both accepted into the program and attended along with students from all over the state.

Dow got to explore topics such as “Advanced Solutions to Wicked Problems,” which was an economic-based approach to global challenges, “Wicked Problems and Political Engagement,” which looked at engaging the public in issues, and her favorite class, which involved digitizing historical archives. “We looked at letters from the 1800s and typed them along with descriptions for Radford’s digital records,” she recalled. “Some items, like diaries, were social windows into those times and they painted the picture of life at that moment. I enjoyed seeing the writing style and penmanship. Some of the letters used short-hand, which was fascinating to read, though we could not decipher all of it.”

Throughout the four weeks, Dow and two other students also worked on a research project entitled “Project Disconnect: Breaking the Pipeline Between Social Media Usage and Juvenile Delinquency,” which they then presented to the entire academy. “I chose this topic because it is timely and there is emerging legislation on social media,” she said, “however there is no official control and relatively few studies have been done on this massive subject.” She also wrote a paper on her own around the same topic and received an award from the program.

Among the academic highlights were also broader social ones for Dow, including being in such a supportive, non-competitive learning environment among visual and performing artists. “It was so fulfilling to be surrounded by like-minded peers,” she said. “Everyone was so engaged in what we were studying and doing and the environment was immersive. There was always something to do, which I loved.”

Dow does not struggle with finding things to do, as she is a highly talented harp player who has been playing since second grade. At school, she is an integral member of the Trinity Strings Ensemble. Around Richmond, she plays in the Richmond Philharmonic Orchestra, the Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra, the American Youth Harp Ensemble, and she is asked to play at private events as well.

Dow has also spent the past four summers volunteering at the Science Museum of Virginia, working both at the children’s camps and as a gallery educator, a role she particularly enjoyed this year. “I saw more of the museum than I ever had and saw the inner workings,” she said. “I hope to continue volunteering here during the school year. I’ve grown to love it because it is different every day and I really enjoy the variety.”

Dow credits her familial support as key to sustaining her with her busy schedule: “My family is so great, and I appreciate them so much.” With such varied interests and activities, Dow is able to enjoy “families” of all kinds as she explores her passions.

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About “Connections”

Connections is a regular online column, written from the first-person perspective of Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00, Head of Community Engagement:

In this space, I have the privilege of sharing stories of Trinity students, alumni, and faculty and staff who are carrying our mission beyond the boundaries of campus. Many of these stories might not make the headlines, but they will illustrate how every member of the Trinity community has a unique path to discover, and the ability to make an impact on both the Trinity community and the world beyond.

I am fortunate to have been a part of this community since my own adolescence. I have been a student, a teacher, a coach, and an administrator, and in these roles I have witnessed the school’s growth and evolution through the years. We have grown in size as well as spirit.

Stories here will capture how seeds planted at Trinity have taken root and flourished into full-grown passions. You’ll also read stories of those in our community who bring their gifts from outside to help us learn. At Trinity, we seek to develop lifelong learners, and stories here will illustrate real-life examples of that beautiful symbiosis.