Standout Student: Aayush Gupta, Wayzata High School
Economics class at Wayzata High School occasionally requires students to engage in small group discussions. Aayush Gupta isn’t afraid to speak his mind.
But this isn’t the only area where he excels.
“Science Bowl is my primary involvement here at the high school,” Gupta said. “I’m a captain for that team and I’ve been involved with that club for eight years now.”
Science is one of his passions. Just ask his Science Bowl coach, Amanda Laden.
“Aayush knows more details of biology than I do, and I’ve been teaching that class for 21 years and have a master’s degree in the field,” Laden said. “So it’s impressive.”
Standout Student Helps Lead Wayzata to Science Bowl Championship
Last school year, Aayush used that passion for science to help lead Wayzata’s Science Bowl team to a national championship in Washington, D.C.
“That’s the moment I’m never gonna forget,” he said. “And the reason behind that is less about the magnitude of that victory, it’s about the process getting there.”
That process began when he was a sixth grader on Central Middle School’s Science Bowl team. Now, he and a friend go back to the school to help coach the next generation.
“We just love going back there and seeing that same passion for science in some of the kids there, so it’s always super fun,” Gupta said.
Laden calls Aayush a selfless individual who is going to be able to do whatever it is he wants in life.
“It really is fun to see a student who has that kind of passion and it makes me want to bring my best every day to the students and help them to kind of reach their own personal goals,” Laden said.
Speaking of personal goals, Aayush hopes that Wayzata’s Science Bowl team can repeat as national champs.
“That’s the goal,” he said. “We’ll see what happens, but that’s the goal.”
As of right now, Aayush is still undecided on a college, but he hopes to study medicine or aerospace engineering.
Wayzata High School
