NOVA had a lot of assignments that let me see art as one part of a rounded skillset and helped instill some basic research skills and interest in the world that I carried with me later to my History major at UW Seattle—interest in environmental protection, political dialogue, social justice and art. I learned to do MLA citations in seventh grade, and while formats for citations changed, the habit helped me through both high school and college with a lot less confusion than peers faced. I also think the relatively noncompetitive, creatively generative atmosphere in NOVA allowed me to feel as comfortable as possible being a weird (gay, trans, autistic) kid.

NOVA let me be myself, encouraged my interest in books and comics regardless of whether they were "for" my age group, allowed and encouraged a variety of interests, helped kids express themselves and also set standards for research. I think all this has allowed me to be a writer. I also think that seeing NOVA teachers interact respectfully with young people while setting limits has informed both my interest in working with young people and how I relate to them as a children's librarian.