My first time at Loomis was when I was moving in. I can’t understand how I did that as a 14-year-old, but it has changed the trajectory of my life into taking even bigger steps, going abroad to study in Italy [in the fall of junior year], and now college.”

Victoria Amador ’25

Curiosity and Courage

Victoria Amador’s educational journey took a turn in seventh grade.

She watched a YouTube video about a week in boarding-school life. “I kind of went down this rabbit hole of finding out about boarding schools. I guess I was 12 at the time, and as fate would have it, I found out there was going to be a boarding school fair in my hometown [Denver]. Loomis Chaffee was there. And I remember … seeing an aerial shot of the campus that looked just great,” she recalls.

She applied. She got in. “My parents for some reason allowed me to follow this insane dream that I had,” Victoria says.

Coming to Loomis, she says, is her proudest moment because it led to so much.

“I had never been to the East Coast,” she says. “My first time at Loomis was when I was moving in. I can’t understand how I did that as a 14-year-old, but it has changed the trajectory of my life into taking even bigger steps, going abroad to study in Italy [in the fall of junior year], and now college. All of that seemed so much easier because I decided to take the step to come here, so I’m very proud of myself.”

Victoria was a president of Pa’lante, an affinity group for Hispanic students, for two years; and a diversity, equity, and inclusion intern for three years.

“I grew up in a predominantly Mexican community and went to an Hispanic Catholic school, so the biggest challenge [in adjusting to Loomis] was not having that community,” Victoria says. “But that is also what excited me about Loomis, getting to know other people, and I think there is a lot of value in that. But there is value in making community [that reflects yourself], and through Pa’lante and DEI that is what I’ve tried to do.”

Another challenge, she says, was finding the right balance between academics and other parts of school life. “I was unbalanced early on,” she says, “but found the balance my junior year, and this year I was busier than ever.”

In the summer before her junior year, she spent three weeks studying global entrepreneurship in Dublin, Ireland, and then she spent a semester in Italy in the School Year Abroad program as a junior.

As she entered her senior year last fall, she joined the girls cross country team. She had never run cross country.

“When I was telling people, they said, ‘Why would you add another crazy responsibility to an already busy time?’” she says. “I had started running with my sister [rising junior Regina] over the summer, and she was going to join, and I said, ‘There is really no other chance for me.’ I had never been part of a team, so I joined. It was insane and super difficult, but it honestly was one of the most enjoyable parts of my year because I was pushing myself every day. And it was really nice to be part of a team.”

Her semester in Italy involved an abundance of experiential learning opportunities, including trips to various sites of cultural and historical significance, she says. One of her senior electives back at Loomis, Literature and the Environment, taught by Writing Initiatives Director John Morrell, brought that same sense of wonder. The class read Walden, the classic book by Henry David Thoreau, and the classroom extended beyond its walls.

“We would take the time to go on walks and observe,” Victoria says. “That was really nice. ... You live here but you don’t notice how much is around you if you don’t actually look, and I feel that class has helped me to look and connect with nature and appreciate it.”

Books have stoked Victoria’s endless curiosity for years. Her favorite books are the Throne of Glass series, fantasy young adult novels. “You step into another world, and that has inspired me to do that in my life,” she says.

She was involved in debate before high school, and she participated in the Loomis Chaffee Debate Society all four years. She also entered the Katharine Brush Flash Fiction Contest all four years, and her work was honored during her final three years. “I knew I loved to read, but wanted to give writing a go,” she says. As a junior and senior, she also was assistant editor of The Loom, the school’s literary magazine.

Victoria graduated with Cum Laude honors and a Global & Environmental Studies Certificate (GESC). The GESC program, administered by the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies, combines coursework, co-curricular engagement, and experiential learning. Its mission is to “develop global and environmentally engaged citizens.” A capstone project concludes the program. Victoria’s centered on transcribing 20 pages of the travel journal of one of Loomis’ Founders, Osbert Loomis, from his year spent in Europe in 1871.

“Loomis has allowed me to learn so much, to grow, and experience the world,” Victoria says.

Through the eyes of a Founder of the school, and through her own eyes more than 150 years later.

Quick Takes

College: Pomona College

Clubs/activities: Cum Laude Society; a president of Pa’lante (affinity group for Hispanic students) for two years; diversity, equity, and inclusion intern; resident assistant in Flagg Hall; assistant editor of The Loom, LC’s literary magazine; Debate Society for four years; cross country team as a senior; Global & Environmental Studies Certificate

On being an RA: She enjoyed the opportunity and says it is not an “authoritarian relationship” but one of “we’re here to build community together.”

Describe yourself as a freshman and as a senior: “Brave but lost ... and more reserved” as a freshman. As a senior, “more confident, maybe more free, and grateful for all the opportunities.”

Favorite meal at home: Posole (Mexican soup with pork and hominy). She describes it as hearty and delicious. “I could eat it breakfast, lunch, and dinner, winter, summer ...” There also are her mom’s breakfast chilaquiles, a dish made with corn tortillas, eggs, cheese, and enchilada sauce. “On the weekend we have it all the time for breakfast, and I love it.”

If you were a superhero, which superpower would you have? “Reading minds. I feel I’m good at reading people, but actually being able to would be great.” Her superhero name? “Mind Master.”

If you could invite anyone to dinner, past or present, who would it be? Her late grandfather on her dad’s side. “My family always talks about his story because he was the first to move from Mexico to the U.S., and I’d like to hear how it was for him.”