Student Spotlight: Pursuing Academics, Athletics, And The Arts

Article updated with a correction on 11/1/24

The Nelsons know how to make the most out of being a Visions family. The oldest Siobhan graduated in 2023 and is currently continuing her education at UCLA, 14 year old Maeve is the University Prep Academy’s sole representative on this year’s Advisory Board, fourth grader Peitiula is thriving in the Home School Academy, and their brother Desmond is composing songs for musicals and founding new clubs.

As the second oldest, Desmond has been a student at Visions for over twelve years. When Siobhan initially asked their mom to switch from traditional public school to homeschool, Desmond followed suit, finding that the resources and opportunities at Visions were much more aligned to his passions.

“I have been fortunate to have the freedom to use charter funds to pursue interests like piano and fencing lessons, which I could not have done in a standard public school,” says Desmond.

A prolific piano player, Desmond has been able to spend time honing a craft that he’s been interested in since he was six years old. Mostly self-taught on a used piano that his grandma bought for their homeschool classroom, Desmond has learned to read and write music, taking on the initiative of composing and performing live the soundtrack, including sound effects, for our Drama Club’s 10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse musical last year (pictured left).

“I love playing music, and also enjoy composing my own songs. I thought it [composing] would be an excellent creative opportunity, where I would have a lot of freedom to follow my creative drive,” says Desmond. “It was such an incredible experience to be able to get a sense of what working behind the scenes on a big show is really like. I got to work with our incredible director Ms. Simpson to make this show the best it could be through sound effects and music.”

Start Spreading The News

Desmond is also currently pursuing another creative avenue – writing. This year, Desmond’s sister Maeve (pictured center in the right photo) and fellow student Valerie Gorman co-founded Visions first student run Newspaper Club. Desmond is the Vice-President and has been an active participant since the club began. Planning to cover sports and the club spotlight section, Desmond is looking forward to publishing their first issue and in turn, bringing our student body closer together.

“[Desmond] was a key member of our original team and contributed to our mock issue as a writer. His work in both the mock issue and our first official issue has been instrumental in creating a great publication, so he is definitely an integral member of the newspaper,” said Maeve.
This section of the article has been corrected to clarify the background on the founders of the Newspaper Club.

“It is an exciting opportunity to connect with other students and share information which may help other students,” says Desmond. “I hope to help spread the word about…field trips and events students can attend. These events can help bring us all together, and create a common experience in addition to providing opportunities for learning and fun!” says Desmond.

Enriching His Education

Along with music and writing, Desmond loves to fence, using his budget to take lessons with Visions Vendor Premier Fencing Academy. He’s also interested in STEM, working with one of our Social Workers to expand the program at Visions.

“I participated in Visions’ STEM club last year and was awarded their scholarship, which I applied towards the tuition of UC Santa Cruz’s high school program. Last summer I took ‘Intro to Music Theory’ online, and it was a fantastic experience,” says Desmond. “This year I am working closely with Mr. Fuentes to expand the STEM mentoring program through UC Davis. I met him at the Visions Club Rush, and began working together to elevate the STEM program, expand it to more students, and create a student-led leadership team to help advise on the program.”

Desmond has also found support in his credentialed teacher, Judy Flora, who has been an instrumental guide in his high school and post-high school careers.

“Ms. Flora has been a great support, and allows me the freedom to pursue my interest and passions while helping ensure my education meets standards,” says Desmond.

Through our dual enrollment program, Desmond has been taking classes at both Woodland Community College and Columbia Community College since the summer before his freshman year, in addition to his honors classes. He plans on applying to several University of California schools, majoring in Cognitive Science and becoming a software engineer, while keeping up his fencing and continuing to make music.

“I am playing piano at an upcoming charity event, Carmichael Inner Wheel, and will always play piano for fun,” says Desmond. “I also recently produced a compilation of my music which is unpublished but burned onto a CD I have given to friends and family.”

For now, Desmond is continuing to enjoy his high school experience. He looks forward to continuing to work with his teachers and peers and connect them to all the opportunities at Visions.

“It is great to connect with other students and hear their perspectives, and I am looking forward to more in person events and activities.”