To call Scotts Valley High School senior Megan Gurer wise beyond her years would be doing her an injustice. She’s taken advanced studies into a realm that most 17-year-olds can only dream about.
A member of the school’s International Baccalaureate Organizations Diploma Program (IB), Gurer last week captured the $5,000 Garry Prather Scholarship to help defray college expenses.
“The past two years in the IB program have stretched my thinking in ways I previously thought not possible, and exposed me to new ideas and areas of study,” said Gurer of the worldwide program that was formerly called the Advanced Placement (AP) program. “Whether it be anthropology or physics, IB has allowed me to approach it with an open mind and understand the greater implications to benefit humanity.”
The IB is a demanding pre-university course of study that leads to examinations and is designed for highly motivated juniors and seniors, with 16 students expected to graduate this June. The IB has become a signature program for the high school and attracts students from worldwide.
“The classes are very advanced,” said David Crawford, who has been teaching IB chemistry for 12 years at Scotts Valley High School. “It’s the equivalent of taking a dozen AP classes.”
The challenge for Gurer is squeezing enough hours in each day to pursue all her interests.
“She’s endlessly curious and very passionate about learning,” said her father Emir who, like her mother, Denise, works as a physicist. “She’s fascinated about how the world works.”
Last June when her classmates enjoyed the sunshine and worked hard at recreation, Gurer served an internship at the University of California Santa Cruz Genomics Institute. She and her graduate research partner discovered two genetic mutations associated with how sugars are used to produce energy in patients with Huntington’s disease.
“This research could have huge implications,” said Gurer, who was the only high school student to present a paper at the Northern California Computational Biology Symposium, which explored the genetic link between type 2 diabetes and Huntington’s disease. “It will open Huntington’s research.”
Don’t, however, get the impression that life for Gurer is all work and no play.
On weekends, Gurer works at Monterey Bay Aquarium as a member of its Teen Conservation Leadership program, and regularly volunteers at the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter. Gurer is a Certificate of Merit pianist, who loves classical music and also races for the Cabrillo Thresher’s competitive swim team.
“She’s very humble,” said mother Denise, of her daughter who looked rather out of place at the party thrown to honor her. “This reward will be a real boost for her and help her to have faith in her abilities.”
A lifelong science student, Gurer envisions herself pursuing a medical degree after attending college. She has already applied to 15 colleges and anticipates making a choice in early spring. Possibilities include Brown University, UCLA and Scripps College.
“Science is a way to understand more about the world,” Gurer said. “It’s a way you can help people.”
