Alessia Primo ’26 (Italy) will study Economics, Finance, and Data Science at Imperial College London, selecting the public research institution renowned for science, technology, engineering, medicine, and business over Queen Mary University London and University of St Andrews. Alessia arrived at TASIS in grade one and made the most of her 12 years at the school. She earned a Bilingual International Baccalaureate Diploma in English and Italian, scoring an outstanding 42 points, after already demonstrating academic versatility as a 10th grader by notching a perfect 5 on three AP exams: Computer Science, European History, and Precalculus. She was an easy choice for the TASIS Cum Laude Society chapter, inducted near the end of grade 11, and her contributions were celebrated at the Class of 2026 Commencement Ceremony, where she received both the Bertha Seifert Award for Excellence in Music and the Michael Ulku-Steiner Leadership Award. A cornerstone of the performing arts scene, Alessia served as President of the High School Choir, starred in numerous musical theater productions, and danced for the Cheer and Pom team. Beyond stage roles, she served as a prefect for the Residential Life program and applied her analytical talents as a member of the Math Club. In reflecting on her biggest accomplishments, Alessia highlighted her choir presidency, which led to a student leadership system in the Performing Arts Department after she attended a vocal choral intensive at Boston Conservatory. She also co-created a family fun day with classmate Serafina Ballerini in cooperation with the EI Cure Project, a fundraising event that may become yearly. Alessia credited TASIS with preparing her academically and socially for university, noting that the IB and AP classes provided rigor and helped her discover passions. She described how her IB Physics HL journey taught her to understand reasoning rather than memorize steps, a shift that prepared her for university independence. She also valued the cultural understanding gained from TASIS’s diverse community.
The College Counseling Office was a major support for Alessia, who spent lunches and free periods in their office working on assignments. She thanked Mr. Fritz for influencing her path by encouraging her to research different yet similar undergraduate courses when she was rigidly focused on math and economics, ultimately helping her understand her interests and goals. Alessia plans to work in finance, likely as an analyst, driven by her father’s environment and the film Wall Street, but she wants her career to maximize social impact, particularly in reducing wealth inequality—a phenomenon that struck her during her Global Service Program trip to Cambodia. That trip changed her life. Visiting the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and seeing extreme wealth disparity on the bus ride from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap forced her to confront inequality. Building house number 543 for a family of six transformed her goals: she no longer seeks only a prestigious degree or lucrative career but wants to acquire resources and expertise to reduce profound inequalities dictated by chance. Among courses and teachers, she will remember IB Economics with Mr. Skove for his passion and humor; Mr. Bleckel, who trusted her to join IB Physics late; Mr. Ogilvie, her advisor and chemistry teacher, for his humor and AI songs; and most fondly her voice teacher, Mr. Eugene Villanueva, who mentored her beyond vocal technique and helped her become the student she is today. She will miss the people most—lasting friendships from first grade and new ones made as a prefect—and the daily familiar faces, though she knows she can visit when nostalgic.
