Valedictorian Ethan Santoni-Colvin wants to shape the future through technology and plans to do so by majoring in electrical and computer engineering as he heads to the University of Texas at Austin this fall. Ethan said that he has always had an interest in engineering and computers.
“I am always tinkering with computers and prefer working with hardware over programming,” Ethan said. “I hope to be able to physically build computers, rather than programming them. Integrating computers into literally everything is the future and I want to be a part of that.”
Ethan strives for excellence in and out of the classroom. Among his many accomplishments, Ethan is most proud of becoming an Eagle Scout, National Merit Scholar and most recently, placing at the state level UIL Academic meet.
Ethan credits his physics teacher Wade Green as his most influential teacher because of his ability to break down complex concepts into simpler ones. He said he has also learned from Green that it is okay to not know an answer right away and to be okay with looking it up and coming back with the right answer later.
Green said Ethan always strives for excellence and is never satisfied with “good enough.”
“Ethan is just about the most driven student I have ever taught.,” Green said. “One of his greatest skills in physics is that he makes connections between the various topics we study and sees how it’s all connected. It’s a very ‘physicist’ approach that is very rare even in advanced students.”
While at Stony Point, Ethan was part of the rigorous International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme, the IB student organization, UIL Social Studies academic team and the National Honor Society. He was also very active in boy scouts and did service at Helping Hands.
As Ethan’s Round Rock ISD journey through Gattis Elementary School, Hernandez Middle School and Stony Point High School are coming to an end, he said he is looking forward to Project Graduation and hanging out with his IB peers one more time.
