My oar clicks into the river and rushes sternward. As I pull it through the water, the blade creates a large dark pool in its wake until it emerges with a satisfying 'clunk.' As I coil up to take another stroke, I maintain a perfect one-inch gap between the surface and my recovering blade. I count under my breath to keep a metronomic rhythm with the athlete in front of me. "One, two, three, catch. one, two, three, catch."...

For as long as I can remember, politics and government have captivated me. I was always one of the few kids interested in a civics lesson, and when the teacher would ask who the governor was or how many U.S. Senators there were, my hand was bound to shoot up. That interest was confirmed one day in fifth grade, when I visited the Connecticut Supreme Court with my father to watch him argue a case. I could never recall...

Summer is your opportunity to embrace challenges and opportunities that would never be available during the school year. Use this time to pursue what you love....

My application to the University of Pennsylvania was submitted with the tacit acknowledgement that, if admitted, I would never be the smartest person in the room, nor the most talented, nor the...