Riverside’s Montgomery shoots for the stars

Riverside High School senior Tristan Montgomery wanted to challenge himself, so when it came time to apply for college, he applied to Ivy League and other schools with traditionally low acceptance rates. The plan worked. He was accepted to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and Emory University in Atlanta.

“The biggest thing, at least for me, was not to be afraid to apply,” he said. “The worse thing that can happen in college admissions is that you don’t apply somewhere where you could have been accepted.”

Riverside teacher Sheila Messick said Montgomery’s acceptance into the prestigious schools is a major accomplishment. She said he spent a significant amount of time applying for scholarships and writing the essays that went along with them.

“He began as a ninth grader who barely squeaked by into honors English, was thrilled to be taking honors classes and was always grateful for the educators at RHS,” she said. “He is now more confident and beginning to believe in himself.”

Montgomery was born and raised here. “I’ve lived at the same house in Chattaroy my whole life,” he said.

He threw himself into his high school experience. As a freshman he signed up for basketball, football, cross country and track. “I’ve really done quite a lot in term of sports,” he said. “I like cross country the most. I like running.”

But by his junior year he was hindered by injuries, including one to his Achilles tendon. He still signed up for sports, but found his ability to compete curtailed. “I couldn’t be as involved as I wanted to,” he said.

He’s also been a part of his school’s Knowledge Bowl team all four years. He was president of the group this year, which was also the first year the team won the right to compete in the state competition. “COVID shut down the event, so we didn’t get to go,” he said.

His focus has also been on college. He applied to 10 schools and was pleased to be accepted at Johns Hopkins and Emory. But then he had a choice to make. “It was a really difficult decision,” he said. “These two schools are so close in terms of the academics they offer.”

He looked at the clubs each school had and the support systems they offered students. He chose Emory. “I thought it would be more fun,” he said. “Emory seemed like the right choice.”

But Montgomery is still a little unsure about what he wants out of the experience. He considered studying engineering, but said he finds the design process confusing. He plans to get a degree in applied mathematics instead. “I’m not really sure what I’m going to do for a career,” he said.

He’s just glad he took the chance on applying to schools that some people don’t apply to just because they assume they won’t be selected. But Montgomery said he believes it’s all about luck.

“At the end of the day, it’s a bit of a dice roll,” he said. “Everyone who applies is qualified. It’s whether or not your essay appeals to someone.”

Montgomery said he did it as a challenge to himself, though he did have a “loose backup plan” to attend Washington State University, where his older sister is currently a student. “I wanted to go somewhere where I was going to be challenged academically,” he said.

Going to Atlanta for school may be hard for someone who has lived in the same home for his entire life, but Montgomery said he thinks he’ll be okay. And if he struggles, he’ll use some of those support resources he researched.

“It’ll probably be harder than I imagine it will be,” he said. “I think I can handle it.”