Beaver Reflections:
I graduated from Beaver in 1979 and started in 7th grade. There were only 49 kids in my class, it was very, very small. It was very intimate. I had a full scholarship for all six years that I was there. The first couple years were really hard, because in 5th and 6th grade, I went to the Boston Public Schools and all my friends that I had been with for two years went to another school, and I went to Beaver. But I remember, everybody being really friendly, and it wasn’t like very long at all, that I really felt like a part of the community. It was great. I remember doing a lot of photography with my old photography teacher, Major Cohen. It taught me that if there’s something that I have passion about, then I should just go for it and pursue that dream, and I will be able to get there. And not every school does that. I think a lot of schools try to put you into their mold. They put out kids that they know will be successful, but those kids aren’t necessarily following their own passions. I’ll always look back at Beaver and be very grateful for that.

What is #happeningnow in your life:
I graduated in ‘79 and went to Cornell. After two years at Cornell, I, well, let me back up a little. I always knew that I wanted to be a doctor, from I can’t even remember how long. I left Beaver, went to Cornell, and was going to be pre-med all the way. After my sophomore year at Cornell I actually pulled out because my grades were so bad. I think that I was depressed in some ways; I had a lot of family stuff going on. The school sent me a letter saying you need to get your life together and we’ll see you in a year. I went back home to Boston, took some courses at BU just to prove to myself I was still smart. After two years I went back to Cornell and finished. The pre-med counselor said, “I give you a 51% chance of getting into med school somewhere.” Beaver taught me that a 51% chance still means you can be successful. I moved to California, became a California state resident because the med schools were the least expensive med schools in the country, and applied and then got into UC Irvine. Today, as a cancer surgeon, my work hasn’t slowed down since it is essential work. And now I am homeschooling my children. This added another level of complexity on top of what has already been a pretty busy schedule. I had to administer the AP exams for both of my children, which was very stressful due to internet issues.

“Beaver’s the place that I learned that as long as I try I’ve got a really good chance of succeeding.”

– Cheryl Saenz ’79

Advice to the current Beaver students:
“This pandemic has been a testament to how strong and capable you all are. Do not let any sort of adversity stand in your way. If plan A does not work, go to Plan B. And if Plan B does not work, go to Plan C. Don’t ever think that you have exhausted every option for something you really want. You will get there because of your resilience.”