Yes, he is impressed by her grades. They are impressive: All A’s, not a single B — and with a course-load that features the top-level calculus class and a handful of other AP offerings.

He is also impressed by her extracurricular activities. She is the vice president of the student council, the vice president of the National Honor Society, and co-captain of the state championship math team. 

But it was something small, almost invisible, that left Barrington High School Principal Joe Hurley truly awed by senior student Lucy Dreier. 

After noticing that trash was getting left behind in the outdoor lunch area earlier this year, Dreier and a few of her friends took it upon themselves to stick around at the end of the period and pick up any items left behind. 

“She did it because she felt empathy for the custodians,” Hurley said. “She did it because … that’s just who she is.”

The volunteer effort did not end up on her college résumé, Hurley said. Dreier did not list it on any scholarship applications.

“She does it because she feels it’s the right thing to do,” he said.

Hurley said it was for actions like that, in addition to an unblemished academic record, that earned Dreier a highly-coveted U.S. Presidential Scholar award recently. 

She is one of only three students from Rhode Island and just 161 nationwide to earn the honor. The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars selects the recipients annually based on their academic success, artistic and technical excellence, essays, school evaluations and transcripts, as well as a demonstrated commitment to community service and leadership.

Hurley said he wrote Dreier a letter of recommendation for the award.

“I put it in my letter that she epitomizes the kindness, compassion and caring for all… what she does she does out of kindness,” Hurley said. “She doesn’t do it to get accolades. She doesn’t do it to put something on her résumé. She does it because she feels it’s the right thing to do. I wrote … ‘In my 42 years doing this job — here for 23 — I place her in the top 1 percent of the students who I’ve known, who do the right thing not to receive accolades or recognition, but because it’s the right thing to do.’”

Driven

Dreier was five years old when she set her sights on college. 

Not during her freshman year at Barrington High School. Not in the summer before her junior year. No. When she was five years old, Dreier began working towards college.

“I had my schools that I wanted to get into,” she said during a recent interview.

“It was the ones that I knew, so it was Harvard, Stanford and Georgetown was on my list, and that’s where I am going.”

Dreier will attend Georgetown University in the fall, as a biology major on a pre-med track. 

“I’ve wanted to be a doctor since I was three,” Dreier said. “I’ve just always been interested in science, especially the brain, I’ve been fascinated by it.

“I want to be a pediatric neurosurgeon. I’ve always been so interested in the brain. I did a summer camp at Georgetown a couple of years ago, and we got to watch a cadaver dissection. And I was the only person who could watch the brain dissection. I thought that was so cool. And everyone else was trying not to throw up. I thought it was the coolest thing. And I love working with kids. I just feel that that’s a good blend of all of my (interests).”

Dreier listed her interests: Academics, math team, Science Olympiad, extracurricular clubs, and ballet. She started dancing in the third grade.

“I’m there five days a week, after school or Saturday mornings,” she said. And it is through ballet, or at least the injuries suffered while dancing, that has added to her interest in medicine.

“With dance I’ve had so many injuries that I’m constantly going to doctors,” she said, adding that she has been dealing with a back injury most recently. “It’s kind of a good… I get to take a little break. Dance keeps me strong, and I’ve found, it helps me with school. There’s the athletic piece, and there’s always the artistic piece, and there’s also the piece where you have to remember so many things all the time. My brain is constantly working a million different ways. I’ve founds that’s very helpful to me.”

Dreier said ballet also serves as a break from her other activities. 

“My plate’s pretty full, so it’s nice to just go and be there,” she said. 

School work keeps her quite busy. She said she enjoys the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) courses. She also likes to read, but does not like being told what to read. 

“I’m not a very big English student. I’ve loved all my English teachers here, but I’m not a huge writer. I don’t like being told what to read. I like to read, but not if it’s not a book I would enjoy,” she said. 

She may not be a “big” English student, but that does not mean she does not excel in the subject. In fact, she excels in every subject. She is a straight “A” student; she has been for all four years at Barrington High School. Her last “B” came at Barrington Middle School. 

“Once, in eighth grade,” she said. “I took Geometry honors in eighth grade. And it was in that class.”

Dreier said she has a desire to achieve, to accomplish — an inner fire that fuels most of what she does each and every day. She said her parents have supported her hard work.

“My parents have always pushed me. They’ve definitely encouraged me. If there’s nothing in my way, why would I not do that?” Dreier asked.

The BHS senior also modeled her academic approach after her older brother and his friends. She can recall how they always pushed themselves to achieve.

“Those were the people I looked up to,” she said. “They were doing all these things… (I thought) Why can’t I do all these things?”

That drive has yielded impressive results, said Samantha Stebenne, a school counselor in the guidance office at Barrington High School.

“I’ve been working with her for the past four years. Lucy is a wonderful student,” Stebenne said. “When I think about all her accomplishments, it’s kind of hard to condense into a few sentences. She’s been involved in the school community. She’s just an overall great kid. 

“I think she just naturally has leadership built into her DNA. She really strives to do her best in everything she goes after. It’s amazing she’s able to dedicate herself, not only to her schoolwork, but her extracurriculars.”

Stebenne said Dreier has achieved in the face of adversity, including distance learning.

“When we think about what these students have had to adapt to over the past few years… and she’s done so with grace,” Stebenne said. “I think that the staff, we’re overly impressed with Lucy. In awe of her drive and determination… it’s also a motivator to other students… Overall, it sends a positive message to the school and community.”

Stebenne said the soon-to-graduate also possesses strong social skills.

“She’s found that balance that’s worked very well for her, to find success academically and socially, and that’s unique,” Stebenne said. 

“There’s not a single bad thing I can think of. She’s a great kid. I’m so happy for her. She’s worked so hard.”