Grace Miller '16 Recruiting Profile

My name is Grace Miller and I am currently in my senior year at Parkway West High school. I have always been a fan of swimming, from starting as a child to swimming competitively in high school. I swam year round swimming for Parkway Swim Club for 8 years until I decided to be a multi sport athlete in high school. During high school, I have participated in Cross Country, Track, Soccer, and Swimming. While I strive to be the best athlete I can be, I also do sports to have fun and make long life teammates. Overall my goal is to be successful in not only my athletics, but my academics.

In swimming, my competitiveness drives me to work hard in each practice, and to make each day of training count. During swim sets, I challenge myself out of my comfort zone, and push not only myself, but my teammates to be better everyday. I have found that this mindset helps me be successful in the pool. Because I am not a club swimmer, I believe I still have potential to push myself more if I focus on that sport solely. Overall, in high school, I have been a part of the swimming on the state team three years, and placed as an individual my junior and senior year. I believe that my qualifications showed my competitive drive, especially since I came straight from cross country at the beginning of each season. Essentially, I believe that my work ethic and passion for the sport will make me a successful collegiate swimmer.

 Other than swimming, academics are another huge part of my life. Not only do I have strong work ethic for sports, but I also transfer that hard work into the classroom. At Parkway West, I have attained a cumulative GPA of a 3.12 on a 4 scale, and I also have a score of a 19 on the ACT. I'm a strong academic student who works hard and is able to balance academics and sports throughout the year. Not only am I successful in the classroom, but learning is something I look forward to each class. I hope to pursue a major in secondary education. My hard work and perseverance will help me to succeed in college.

Besides swimming and academics, I love to get involved with my school and help others. At Parkway West, I have been invited to be in many leadership roles. I am a member of Drug-Free/Captains Council, Link Crew (a mentoring leadership program), Peer Teaching, Swim team Captain, 6th grade camp counselor, and STAR leader (Drug free initiative). In addition, I was selected to participate in an experiential opportunity focused on Teaching and Learning called Spark! During the school day, I am getting hands on experience in the classroom, which guides me to my goal of being an educator.

One characteristic that I am most proud of is not necessarily something that can be put on paper. Whether I know the person or not, I tend to acknowledge, or give a simple smile because you never know if that will make someone's day. I have the ability to build relationships with others and connect deeply by seeking to understand everyone, to further our success as a group. Based on my overall love for swimming, academics, and being involved, I consider myself a well-rounded person with many different qualities to offer to colleges, coaches, and teammates.