My name is Andrew Nyland, and I tend to enjoy life. I enjoy spending my time outdoors, whether it's skiing, snowboarding, swimming, improving my photography, making short films, and riding my Ripstik (a two wheeled skateboard that is self propelled). When I'm not doing any of these activities I work on my videos or photos, or I currently work on writing graphical animations and models or creating graphic images or web design.
Born in North Carolina and a continued inhabitant of the Research Triangle Park, I am constantly surrounded by people who have a constant yearning to learn and improve the lives around them. I am currently a junior in high school, and with a strong emphasis on choosing what I want to do later in life I decided that my primary interest is based around technology and computer science. Since the summer of my 8th grade year, I have been learning about a playing around with various programming languages and concepts while constantly starting and working on but rarely completing projects. Over the summers I would take classes at the Shodor Foundation and I would watch and read tutorials online the rest of the time.
Realizing that I had more potential and that I could be progressing fast and to higher levels, I decided to delve into and attempt to participate in Shodors Apprenticeship Program, which allows enthusiastic middle and high school students to learn valuable computer skills and improve general skills such as team work, problem solving, and critical thinking.
A main philosophy of my school is the focus on art in an academic curriculum. Since first grade, all students learn artistic skills such as painting, drawing, woodworking, handwork (sowing, knitting, and crocheting), and modeling with clay. Through lower school these skills are greatly honed until, by the beginning of high school, the students are able to create art that occasionally incites aw similar to that of the masters. Currently I am working with the school to try to form a computer club (because of the interest of several students to learn complex computational subjects). Normally none of these students have much exposure to computers and my hope is that when their skills are combined with the power and potential of computers, we will be able to accomplish great feats.
-Andrew Nyland