“As a dorm prefect, I like the idea of facilitating a large community. We have a very good group in Harman.”

Year: Junior

Hometown: Boston, Mass.

Clubs/activities: Varsity water polo, member of Shultz Fellowship, a captain of the debate team, prefect in Harman Hall, president of the Language Protection Society, a president of PRISM, editor of satire section of The Log, bass clarinet in wind ensemble. Last year Tiger earned end-of-year department honors in four subjects: math, history, language, and science. In September, Tiger and fellow junior Victoria Ribeiro accompanied Head of School Jody Reilly Soja and four of her colleagues to Nashville, Tenn., to participate in the inaugural Open Dialogue Summit at Vanderbilt University. 

On what he enjoys about his various activities: “With water polo I’d say it is the team camaraderie and working toward something bigger than yourself. ... In PRISM you are trying to work toward inclusivity and making sure everyone feels involved in this community. As a dorm prefect, I like the idea of facilitating a large community. We have a very good group in Harman. Language Protection Society is interesting for me because I get to share my passion with others. When it comes to Shultz, I don’t want to live in an isolated pocket where all I hear are my beliefs. I want to hear the other side. Having Shultz is a great opportunity for any high schooler to counter political polarization.”

How he came to form the Language Protection Society at Loomis Chaffee: In 2023 Tiger went to the Blackfoot reservation in Montana on a service trip for three weeks. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) lists Blackfoot as a “vulnerable” language because of declining number of speakers. Tiger said his time there gave him first-hand experience in a community facing the challenge of potential loss of a language. He subsequently has gone back, including last summer to interview some elders.    

Favorite place on campus: The benches that overlook the Meadows. “The Meadows are really beautiful; it really doesn’t matter what season we are in. It’s a place I go sometimes to reflect, pray, hang out with friends.”

Favorite meal: “This is kind of a funny story.” Tiger grew up in China. “When I am back in Beijing, there is an American diner I like going to. It’s very interesting because you go back to China to presumably eat Chinese food, but no, every time I head back to China I go to that restaurant, and my favorite dish is a club sandwich.”

How have you changed from freshman year to now: “As a freshman this felt like a pretty big place.” He says he was shy. “But I’d say people would describe me as a pretty outgoing person now. I find every year the school is becoming smaller and smaller — in a good way — as I get to know more people in the community.”

Would you rather live in the past or the future? “On one hand, I want to say the past because I could research stock trends and just invest in, say, Apple in the ’80s.” He laughs.  “But I’d describe myself as an optimist who is prepared for the worst, so I’d be prepared to go back to the past.” He also said he has “hope for the future. I always do.” One hope: That people will come to understand one another better in a more globalized world.

If you could invite anyone to dinner, who would it be? Tiger chose someone with whom he has had dinner many times: his grandfather. “He survived the Great Chinese Famine (late 1950s to early 1960s). As a 13-year-old he was forced to go outside and beg on the streets. He has described atrocious things that happened back then, but despite all that — which would leave someone scarred for their entire life, but it didn’t leave my grandfather scarred — he is one of the most optimistic people that I know. He worked incredibly hard in his life to make life better for his family. Every time I sit down with my grandpa and we talk about the past, I am struck and awed by how much persistence, how much grit, he has shown, and he is still an optimist. He’s a spiritual anchor for me.”