Category: News

Adriane Hamalian, a 2006 graduate of Darby High School, said she wouldn’t be where she is today without the encouragement of a few Hilliard staff. 

“Sometimes all it takes is one person that believes in you for you to see your own potential,” she said. 

Upon graduating, she earned her associate degree in 2013, then her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2021. She currently works in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Riverside for Nationwide Children’s Hospital as a certified lactation counselor. She is also currently enrolled in the University of Cincinnati’s Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, Doctor of Nursing Practice program and hopes to one day provide mental health services to at-risk youth and women in the very community that gave her her start. 

Adriane resides in Hilliard with her three children, a daughter who is a freshman at Darby High School and twin boys that attend Washington Elementary. She has enjoyed reconnecting with many of the teachers and coaches that helped her reach success. 

She said, “It’s been really special to watch my kids grow up in the same community that I did and I can’t wait to see how they will change the world!”

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Senior Davidson engineers had a very successful gathering on Tuesday, March 7, when they aimed to imitate the famous television show, “Shark Tank.” They had 11 project teams who presented to adults around the community who were invited to be the “sharks.” Each project team chose an innovation for which they had passion, and they put in hard work for these throughout the entire year. This event served as the students’ capstone, given they reached out to all the adults and then received professional criticism on their innovations.

“My group learned from engineers at Ford and Honda, along with other outstanding adults, about how to enhance our anti-texting and driving innovation. As a class, we have grown so much through his opportunity and are thankful for all the help we have received, as we are the future of innovation in this country.” – Davidson senior Cole Carter

BNLC Behavioral Intervention Specialist Kiersten Houser goes above and beyond to bring her best self to her classroom every day. 

This is Kiersten’s first year teaching as the Behavioral Intervention Specialist, in which she is focusing on her students’ social-emotional regulations along with helping them with their academic work in their classroom. She teaches around 13 students, mainly in 1st grade. Kiersten finds that having a balanced social life outside of work helps bring her best self to her classroom. 

If teaching weren’t already enough, Kiersten is involved in a sand volleyball league and she’s getting her masters in special education. She finds that during her busy week, playing sand volleyball gives her something to look forward to between work and studying. She also noticed that when she finds the time to exercise, be it playing volleyball or going to a gym, she is more focused and energized throughout the day; this helps her stay motivated with her busy schedule. 

Teachers that work with Kiersten find that she is very knowledgeable and resourceful when it comes to dealing with their students’ behaviors. She has the opportunity to directly use what she’s learning in her master’s program in her own classroom. She knows that not all days are easy and the best thing for the students and staff is to reset and start each day fresh. 

When it comes to being a full-time teacher and student, she finds that her support system in and out of school is necessary to bring her best self to the classroom and school. Kiersten has amazing friends and family that are always there for her and can relate to her journey and struggles. Her mom is also a Behavioral Intervention Specialist and is a great person with whom she can discuss her job and career. Her friends are also in education, so they can empathize with one another and seek advice. 

Kiersten truly brings her best self to everything she does, and it shows in and outside of the classroom.  

The Davidson High School Chamber Orchestra rehearsed with special guest Noah Bendix-Balgley. Bendix-Balgley is a world-renowned American classical violinist who is the Concertmaster of the prestigious Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

Born in Asheville, North Carolina, Noah began playing the violin at the age of 4. He graduated from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and was later recognized as a laureate of the 2009 Queen Elisabeth Competition. He has also won top prizes at the Long-Thibaud Competition in France and the Postacchini Competition in Italy.

He is in town to solo with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra and had some time to work in a rehearsal with Davidson. Having someone with his talent and experience is an amazing opportunity for these students.

Justin Fuller is one of those people who knew from a young age what he wanted to do with his life. Thankfully, Hilliard provided classes that paved the way for him to follow his desired career track. 

He became interested in engineering when he was in middle school. Then, flying remote control planes was one of his favorite pastimes. He recalls becoming frustrated with the hobby, however, as the expensive lithium batteries that powered the model aircraft would frequently swell up and die. As any good engineer would do, he spent countless hours researching basic electrical principles and battery chemistries to find the root cause. 

On entering high school, he was pleased to learn that Hilliard offered four years of introductory engineering courses.

“Of all my high school experiences, these courses likely influenced my life beyond school the most,” he said. “Each course provided me with exposure to various engineering fields and gave me a sense of direction when determining which field I wanted to pursue.”  

After graduating from Davidson in 2015, he attended The Ohio State University where he obtained his bachelor’s in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Today, he is an electrical engineer at Lockheed Martin Space in Denver, Colorado. He specializes in power electronics and is responsible for the early design and analysis of electrical power converters or power supplies used on various spacecraft, satellites and space probes. 

While the design predates his employment, his group is responsible for the power design on NASA’s Orion spacecraft which recently launched on Artemis 1 a few weeks ago and will soon be used for the next manned lunar mission. Justin is currently working on designs for large geostationary satellites including those used for GPS navigation and early-warning missile detection. 

In his spare time, he enjoys taking advantage of the beautiful Colorado scenery through backpacking, hiking (including summiting the Rocky Mountains) and photography.