Niwot Salutatorian Isobel Tuck on graduating

When Niwot High School principal Eric Rauschkolb told senior Isobel Tuck she was salutatorian, it was a surprise. "I didn't expect it at all," she said. "It was a really big shock, but I was really excited."

Tuck has had a fruitful high school career. She laughed saying her freshman year that she was intense about her grades, adding that she wished she had chilled out a little.

"Relax...trust the process," she advises current and future students. "One of the things that made me successful was when I put down my pride and asked for help from my teachers....That really helped me build connections with my teachers and understand the material."

Beyond her notable academic achievement of being one of the two NHS salutatorians, Tuck also has been involved in the school community. For three years, she has been involved in speech and debate, saying that the partner-acting event "duo" was definitely one of her favorites. She has participated in Link Crew, which is a student group that helps welcome freshmen. Tuck has also been on the golf team, and even started her own club.

As co-founder of the World Wide Women Club, Tuck and her peers focused on women's empowerment, and the club "strives to inspire girls to take on more leadership positions." Due to their goal of partnering with organizations that do international outreach and empowering all women, regardless of varying ethnic and economic backgrounds, they seem to be embracing a kind of intersectional feminism.

Rather than focus generally on imbalances due to gender (e.g., pay gap, access to feminine hygiene products, etc.) intersectional feminists also look to see how women of different backgrounds might specifically be affected, and how to best cater outreach to groups with more specific needs.

Tuck said some of their most memorable moments were making shirts for National Women's Day and wearing them to a pep assembly. Another notable accomplishment of the club was when they partnered with a charity in Kenya and raised $5,000 to support their programs.

Due to COVID, it's been more difficult to meet with their fellow club members. "I hope it continues after we leave," said Tuck. "It was great, it was a really safe space for girls to come and share their experiences."

One of her favorite memories was simply experiencing the Niwot community, especially at pep assemblies, saying that she felt so much school pride and love for all her peers during those events. "I'll miss the events... high school did a good job of getting students excited...and [events] allowed the community to get together in a non-academic setting, which was really amazing." She said that she's going to look back on high school fondly, but that she's excited to graduate and close this chapter of her life.

Next year, Tuck plans on going to the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, to study business administration and political science. Long term, she hopes to do something in management, saying, "I really like to collaborate with people on projects and often take a leadership role. To do that as a career would be interesting and would hopefully help the world."