Leon Jiao

Grade: 12

Started with SA in: Grade 9

Future plans: I will be attending Cornell University for Computer Science. My plan is to be a software engineer for a few years and then maybe create a start-up company.”

Role model: “My parents. I really appreciate everything they do for me and they set a good example for who I should be.”

Favorite thing about SA: “I’ve always really appreciated the community here and getting to know the people well. I’m so much closer to everyone here than when I was at public school.”

Spotlight: Leon has been curating his musical talents since age four when he began playing piano. Then, with his parents encouragement, he took up the violin ten years ago, and has since studied under several prominent teachers including a former assistant concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for 29 years. For the past four years, Leon has participated in the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra and recently served as assistant concertmaster during the Winter Concert on February 11, 2023. “I really enjoy making music and the orchestra playing experience,” said Leon. However, his passions are not limited to music. Leon’s love of logic, strategy, and problem-solving has drawn him to take the American Invitational Math Exam (AIME) the past four years as well as compete with the WhoaBots robotics team throughout his time at SA. Leon has also spent much time golfing and was a member of this year’s championship team at SA. Leon credits the supportive teachers, friends, and resources at SA for helping him to develop both academically and socially, and he looks forward to studying computer science in college because, “Computer science is a really important field as we rely more and more on technology.”