Meet the SPARK! Student Leaders
- Sharon Jiang- President of SPARK! & Aviation
Hi! My name is Sharon, and I'm excited to be leading SPARK! Aviation this year. I have a passion for Biology and Neuroscience. I play golf at school, but in my free time, you can find me reading books, drawing, or taking walks outside when the weather is nice. I can't wait to meet you all and I am so excited about all the fun and learning we will fly through together!
- Luca Mastroianni – Vice President of STEM & Physics
Hello! I'm Luca, a senior at GSSM, and I'm from Clemson. I am pursuing physics to further understand the laws that govern our beautiful world. I dream of eventually starting extensive research on an innovative project that will change the world. In my free time, I like to explore the musical arts, learn more about automobiles, and help others with personal or academic hardships. I enjoy watching k-dramas like Gyeongseong Creature and street racing like Fast & Furious. With the SPARK! team, I aim to make physics an enjoyable subject to learn about and be interested in. I look forward to exploring physics with you all!
- Bhavya Dutta – Vice President Humanities & Literature
Hello, I'm Bhavya! I'm so excited to lead SPARK! Literature this year. I truly started enjoying literature in 8th grade when I started reading books from different genres I had never explored before. In this course we will discuss different time periods important to literature, interesting libraries, writing styles, and literature today. In my free time, I enjoy walking around, watching sit-coms, baking, and spending time with loved ones!
- Tabitha Holden - Astronomy
Hello! I’m Tabitha, a senior from Fort Mill, and I am so excited to be able to share my love of astronomy! I’ve always been interested in space and the night sky from when I was a child looking up at the stars to when I read “Death by Black Hole” for the first time to now when I study it in school. I also love alternative music, reading, and animals, specifically horses. My favorite author is Fernando Pessoa. I hope to study astrophysics in the future and spend a few years at an observatory. I can’t wait to share my love of space with others!
- Rebecca LaBounty– Biology
Hi! I'm Rebecca LaBounty and I am thrilled to be your Biology Subject Leader this year! Biology has always fascinated me, and if I had to pick a favorite topic, it would be evolution. Outside of my studies, I love to read and write books, listen to music, and spend time with friends.
- Sam Senthil – Chemistry Co-Leader
Hi, I’m Sam, a senior at GSSM and co-leader of SPARK! Chemistry. I’m passionate about chemistry because I love understanding how the smallest interactions can explain the world around us. I hope to major in biochemistry in the future. Outside of academics, I enjoy listening to music and playing multiple instruments, watching movies, reading, and playing tennis. I’m excited to share my love for chemistry and make learning both fun and meaningful this year!
- Boone Hitch - Chemistry Co-Leader
Hi! I am Boone Hitch from Clemson, South Carolina, and I’m excited to help teach you all more about chemistry this year through SPARK! Since taking my first chemistry class, it quickly became my favorite science and something I enjoy incorporating into my daily life. As a runner, I have used chemistry concepts to better understand nutrition, energy, and how to sustain my training. I am looking forward to exploring chemistry with you all and showing how it connects to things we experience every day.
- Andy Fang– Chinese
Hi! I am Andy Fang, I'm a senior at GSSM. I am excited to help lead SPARK! Chinese through 2026-27. I love playing Esports like Valorant, although I'm kind of buns. I also enjoy doing sports like soccer and tennis which help me be competitive throughout school.
- Tanishka Amritkar– Computer Science
Hi, I'm Tanishka Amritkar! At GSSM, I am taking many of the various computer science courses provided, such as Cybersecurity. I am also part of robotics and ENGAGE. Outside of school, I enjoy drawing, spending time with friends, watching cartoons, and playing tennis. A fun fact about me is that I once fostered 4 parakeets for a month! I'm so excited to share my interest in computer science with everyone, and hopefully inspire you guys to try new things!
- Victor Zhang - Cyber Security
Hi, Im Victor Zhang and I am a big Computer Science fan. I have competed in the Pico-Ctf cybersecurity challenge and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I do robotics in the my free time and have been using Linux for 5 years now on both Ubuntu and Arch Linux. I am excited to share and teach cybersecurity!
- Sanjay Ramachandran – Engineering
Hi, I'm Sanjey. I'm very passionate about Civil Engineering and I want to get a job in that field when I grow up. In addition to the multiple engineering classes that I've taken at GSSM and my time in high school, I've explored engineering through extracurriculars like FTC Robotics (I'm the team captain of 22972 Excalibur), Seaperch (Here Comes the Boom), and my own personal projects. I am excited to teach engineering!
- Emerson Coppo – Environmental Science
Hi my name is Emerson! I am super excited to be a SPARK leader this year! I have been interested in environmental science for my whole life, and I am excited to bring that experience and enthusiasm to SPARK!
- Tanishka Agerwal– Financial Literacy
Hi! My name is Tanishka Agarwal and I am from Fort Mill. I am so excited to explore the fundamentals of financial literacy this year. It is a very important life skill and learning it from an early age sets us up for a secure financial future. I am interested in biochemistry and research, and in my free time I love to read novels, watch classic movies, swim, and dance. I can't wait to teach you all something new!
- Arfa Rehman - Forensic Science
Hello, my name is Arfa and I am from Florence. I am excited to be leading SPARK! Forensic science because I am very passionate about small sciences, criminal behavior, fingerprints, and patterns. My favorite things to do are watching TV and writing, and I hope to pursue a career as a forensic scientist in the future. I believe that forensic science has the ability to advance significantly, making criminal prosecutions so much more accurate and exploiting trace evidence in the legal process. Outside of that, I enjoy watching TV shows and movies, such as Interview with the Vampire, and I love to make edits in my free time!
- Matthew Slade - Government & Economics
Hi, I'm Matthew Slade! I am very passionate about how governments and economies work. I want to serve in the United States Army or the United States Government, potentially in intelligence or foreign affairs. I also play the clarinet and I love history!
- Victoria Good - History
Hi, I'm Victoria Good from Rock Hill! I'm excited to help lead SPARK! History this year. I'm passionate about physics and history, with one of my favorite subjects being American history. I am also involved in one of GSSM's robotics teams and ENGAGE, which is a part of Women in Computer Science.
- Christian Torres – Marine Biology
Hello! I'm Christian, and I'm excited to be leading SPARK! Marine Biology this year. Outside of class, you can find me playing tennis or watching movies/TV shows. I am passionate about biology and chemistry, and I can't wait to teach you all about Marine Biology!
- Sam McKay - Math
Hi, I'm Sam, a senior at GSSM. This year, I will be the leader of SPARK Math. I am excited to lead SPARK Math because of how interesting and applicable math is in the real world. Whether it's building skyscrapers or bridges, math is always used to test the limits. While biology is my favorite subject, math is a close second and has always fascinated me. I look forward to sharing the wonders of math with you.
- Rachel Kim – Eastern Medicine
Hi! I’m Rachel, a senior at GSSM from Greenville! I’m excited to be leading SPARK! Eastern Medicine this year. I’m passionate about sciences and plan to go into the medical field in the future. I love cooking, baking, arts and crafts, and just hanging out and socializing with people. A fun fact about me is that I have a twin and I'm left handed! I’m excited to share my love for science and introduce students more about Eastern Medicine!
- Shree Patel –Western Medicine Co-Leader
Hey guys! I'm Shree and I'm from Florence. At GSSM, I really love biology and even took Microbiology in my junior year. In my free time, I like to read, paint and play soccer. Some clubs and teams I am a part of, outside of SPARK, are soccer, robotics, and ENGAGE.
- Sai Vallabh Gurram - Western Medicine Co-Leader
Hey everyone! I'm Sai, a senior at GSSM! I'm passionate about medicine and my goal is to become a physician in the future. I love to swim and play soccer or badminton when I have free time. I also love learning more about the human body, and my favorite organ system is the respiratory system! I can't wait to hear what your favorite body system is as we dive into the human body in SPARK! Western Medicine!
- Aliyah Edwards - Neuroscience
Hello! I am Aliyah, and I love learning about neuroscience and enjoy sharing that love with others. Prepare to learn new things about your brain and how it works in your everyday activities. Outside of class, I love to run track like hurdling and such, and I also love to long jump. Plus, I always enjoy good songs! Be prepared to learn and have lots of fun this year!
- Mary Kim - Psychology
Hello all! I am Mary, a senior at GSSM, originally from Mauldin. I am overjoyed to lead SPARK! Psychology this year! I took AP Psychology my sophomore year, and it taught me lots. I hope to share those insights with you all, so everyone can understand the brain and its impact on our actions, thoughts, and emotions. Be ready to learn about everything Psychology with these fun and engaging sessions! I can’t wait to meet you all!
- Trey Hill – Robotics
Hi! I'm Trey, at senior at GSSM. I love mechanical engineering and I found that it is a lot of fun through the medium of robotics! I also like weightlifting and football, and I look forward to teaching SPARK Robotics!
- Beau Whitfield- Sociology
Hey, I'm Beau from Edgefield, a senior at GSSM and I'm incredibly excited to share my love for Sociology with you all. Learning about the ways our brains operate in social settings has always been fascinating to me. My favorite topic has definitely been social stratification. It’s amazing how we as humans create systems for ourselves, whether we are conscious of it or not. Outside of academics, I am very involved in soccer, I love listening to music and taking walks around Hartsville. I can’t wait to show everyone how fun learning about Sociology can be!
- Faith Passmore– Spanish
Hi! I'm Faith, a senior at GSSM, and I am so excited to be a part of SPARK Spanish this year! I am super involved in both robotics and theatre because I like to keep a wide range of passions. My goal is to go into aerospace engineering and become an astrophysicist. I love languages and learning about new cultures, so of course I am super ready for SPARK Spanish. Hi! I'm Asha and I'm a senior at GSSM. I'm interested in biology and chemistry and am really into all things gastro! I also love learning languages and playing sports (especially soccer and swimming) and I love to do sudoku in my free time. I can't wait for SPARK this year!