Soaring Together Scholars — Class of 2028

Abby Fischler ’28
Computer Science and Business

In second grade, Fischler and her classmates were learning to type. She wanted to be the best in her class, so she got up early and practiced on the keyboard until she was the fastest and most accurate. Fischler seems hardwired to excel. That’s how she found herself moving across the country as a 16-year-old to live at an inn in the Vermont mountains to work as a summer intern for Hack Club, a nonprofit co-founded by former foreign correspondent and now tech entrepreneur Christina Asquith. 

How Fischler got there is a story about being the best. In middle school, she joined the robotics team and was quickly elevated to the high school team. When COVID-19 hit, she moved into virtual spaces and found a community at Girl Genius Magazine, dedicated to young women in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. That’s where she found Hack Club and soon earned a seat with a select group of students on a 10-day train ride for hackers called Hacker Zephyr. During that cross-country hackathon, she met Asquith, who asked her to intern for her. That meant working from 6-8 a.m. every day before school and eventually living in Vermont for six weeks for two summers.

That summer had Fischler build relationships with key computer science organizations, like Girls Who Code and FIRST Robotics, as well as girl-focused nonprofits, like Girls Scouts. Fischler needed those partners to launch girl-focused hackathons in cities across the United States. 

In New York City, Fischler ran and hosted a hackathon led by teenage female mentors in partnership with the Girl Scouts. While the Scouts earned a badge, the mentors helped them see how to run events and enjoyed the perk of a dinner with inspiring female leaders including Stacey Cunningham '96, first woman president of the New York Stock Exchange. Mentors then hosted similar events in their own communities, all buoyed by Fischler’s network and marketing expertise.

Classes: Principles of Economics, Introduction to Programming, Writing 1: Academic and Analytical Writing, Calculus I, Business Communications, and Business Foundations

Why Lehigh
Meeting Cunningham helped put Lehigh on Fischler’s radar. It then helped that the university has a program that blended her passion for technology and business. Despite being a native of Los Angeles, she sees New York City in her future, so being closer to the Big Apple helps with all that she hopes to accomplish on and off South Mountain.

Equity
Fischler’s great-grandfather, a rabbi who served a synagogue and then as a traveling rabbi aboard the Queen Elizabeth II, is a key to who she is. When he was over 100 years of age, he inspired her with his willingness to stay current by sending her emails and using Facebook. Her Judaism is foundational to her life, as she attended Jewish schools and sat on her religious school board. She created a program in Los Angeles to help equip Jewish students headed off to college with ways to navigate difficult conversations about Israel, anti-Semitism, and Jew hatred. On campus, she wants to pour her energy into many activities like TAMID, Friends of Israel, Investment Management Group, and Chabad. Like in her days of learning to type, she plans to give those activities 110%.

Aidan Oliver ’28
Psychology

Oliver has been singing and playing piano since he was a child. He was bit by the theater bug early, participating in middle school musicals and attending theatrical summer camps. Soon that work became more serious as he performed with the Upper Darby Summer Stage and led casts as Billy Flynn in Chicago, Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, and Scarecrow in Wizard of Oz. 

His voice has taken him to elite stages as a member of the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association District 12, Region 6, and All-State Choirs. He also served as music director for two a cappella groups in high school. During his senior year, he auditioned for and earned the choral scholarship at Lehigh. He now is a member of the University Choir, Glee Club, and Off the Record a cappella. 

For his Lehigh audition, he sang in French, a language he began to study in the seventh grade and has used casually in his home with his mother ever since. Oliver earned a gold medal on the National French exam. At his senior awards ceremony, he took home honors as the best biology, English, and theater student. The salutatorian was also a nominee as the Department of Education’s U.S. Presidential Scholar.

Classes: Statistics, Introduction to Human Neuroscience, Personality, Religion through Five Senses, Eckardt Seminar

Why Lehigh
The theme of Oliver’s salutatorian speech was self-love. He wanted his peers to better understand themselves and others by being aware of their own health and behaviors. Mental health is a passion of his, which is why he is studying psychology. His goal is to become a clinical psychologist and help children. He recognizes that growing up now is challenging for kids who navigate climate change, political polarization, and social media. 

Working with children for three years as a youth librarian at his public library confirmed his career ambitions and direction. Oliver knew that Lehigh could balance the educational rigor, professional development, artistic climate, and research opportunities he sought. Earning the Soaring Together Scholarship was a huge honor and an endorsement of the institution’s commitment to equity.

Equity
Oliver has a friend who is transgender and watched the pain and difficulty during that discovery and journey. It made Oliver recognize the challenges faced by those navigating similar journeys. From his vantage point, equity among men and women has progressed but not for those who identify as nonbinary and transgender. He believes so much needs to happen politically and culturally to help others understand it and allow people to be who they are without fear of judgment and discrimination. 

Calan Armitage ’28
Economics and Finance

For the first 10 years of his life, Armitage grew up in Rhode Island, but then his family moved onto a boat. His father, who won the America’s Cup in 1995 on the New Zealand team, had the family members cast off their land-loving for one year as they lived at sea. Of course, Armitage learned how to sail and traveled up and down the coastline. 

After docking, the family settled in New Jersey where Armitage fell under his mother’s tutelage. As a former Division I soccer goalie, his mother worked with him as he made the township A-team if, and only if, he agreed to be goalkeeper. He quickly advanced and was soon minding the net for a travel team and then an academy team. 

During his junior year in high school, he took a hard kick to the face that broke his nose, jaw, and eye socket. That concussive injury offered an opportunity to branch into media, where he used his skills from a TV production class to call the matches as a play-by-play announcer. After four months off the field, he returned to his team and continued to work on media projects, like documentaries and freelance editing.

Classes: Foundations of Business, Business Communication, Organizational Behavior, Business Analytics, Environmental Science, Business Statistics, and Calculus I

Why Lehigh
Armitage committed to Lehigh in his senior year. He sought the combination of Division I athletics and a strong business program. His great-grandfather attended Lehigh in the early 1900s. His demanding class schedule is followed by a demanding practice and game schedule. The team is close-knit, but he hopes to find a few mates who share his passion for media production, traveling, and entrepreneurship.

Equity
Armitage looked up to his older brother. When he came out as gay, Armitage knew his brother could face hardships and discrimination. It forced him to get comfortable with himself so he could be an ally. He practiced his allyship in supporting the women’s teams at his high school that sought better locker facilities and media coverage. Of course, the future broadcaster began to cover some games.

Stephanie Percello ’28
Accounting and Finance

As a future businesswoman, Percello thought she should take up golf. She knew the sport would aid her in networking and relationship-building. The entire Percello family would hit the links on weekends. While she is confident in her putting thanks to years of mini-golf, Percello is working on her short game. She’s crushing her driver though — hitting 185 yards off the tee.

This savvy on the links is matched by her savvy in the classroom. She plans to sit for her CPA exam at the end of her senior year. To do so, she needs 150 credits. She brought 28 credits into Lehigh and has no doubt that she will be prepared to achieve her goal.

Classes: Foundations of Business, Principles of Economics, Statistical Methods, Business Analytics, Business Communication, The United Nations

Why Lehigh
She toured Lehigh twice, interviewed, and met with a business major who demonstrated confidence in her experience and preparation. It helped cement Percello’s decision to attend Lehigh. It also inspired her to become a tour guide. She loves Lehigh and wants to help other prospective students feel like this university would be a great fit for achieving their goals and ambitions. She has already joined Women in Finance, a business club that will help her network with peers, alumni, and firms, and she plans to rush a sorority.

Equity
Percello played left wing on her high school soccer team during her freshman and sophomore years. When she retired, she wanted to stay close to the sport, so she began to referee youth soccer. She had to learn to stand up for herself as players, coaches, and parents would argue her calls. She even overheard one parent comment, “That’s why girls shouldn’t be refs.” Despite the challenges, she continued to work at matches, knowing that the skills she was developing would help her navigate other conflicts in her life. These experiences taught Percello to be confident in her ability to speak up for herself. She has encouraged many other young women to become youth referees, setting a positive example for those around her.

Charlotte Witmer-Rich ’28
IDEAS

During her first week on campus, Witmer-Rich joined President Joseph Helble for the early morning Pace the Prez run. She was joined by eager throngs of new students. She doesn’t want to say she outpaced him, but she had a lab that started at 7:55 a.m., so she had to run at a good clip to get to class on time. While intentions are good, that throng has dwindled. Witmer-Rich is in the Run Club on campus, but those practices often conflict with practices at Zoellner where she is a member of the University Choir. The alto has been in choirs for a number of years, but piano is her first love, so she also finds time to get into a practice room. These are all good ways to balance out the stress of a busy academic schedule as well as an extracurricular schedule that includes Engineers Without Borders and United Nations Association.

Classes: IDEAS seminar; Introduction to Engineering; Introduction to Chemical Principles; Calculus II; Sex, Power, and International Politics 

Why Lehigh
Witmer-Rich joined PreLUsion, a pre-orientation experience that brought her to campus early and had her focus on global issues. During the program, she visited the United Nations in New York City. The unique relationship between Lehigh and the U.N. caught her attention as a prospective student. 

The IDEAS program did as well. Witmer-Rich knew she liked math and physics, so engineering was in her future. But she wanted liberal arts because of her interest in global studies and women and gender studies. IDEAS allowed her to blend these worlds and create her own direction of study.

Equity
Witmer-Rich is passionate about equity issues that can improve the lives of women across the world. An area that captured her attention as she worked on an advanced placement capstone project was menstruation stigma. She realized how uncomfortable the topic made people and the lack of knowledge surrounding it. She conducted primary research by speaking with boys in her school, who, sadly, reinforced that stigma. That experience has sparked a passion in her to discuss what goes untalked about and build allies in education and action.

Sofee Rieker ’28
Accounting

Rieker likes to write and draw, so she uses her iPad to doodle people and compose fiction. As a big fan of anime, Rieker was inspired to join her high school volleyball team after watching one series about a short boy determined to dig, set, and spike like the tall star player. Her small school had no physical education classes, so every student had to play on a team. Her volleyball team only won a handful of games over the course of three years, but it had heart. The experience prompted her to join the intramural team on campus. 

She did find more success as a member of the computer science club, where she served as head of code on the robotics team and competed in the FIRST Tech Challenge.

Classes: Symbolic Logic, Organizational Behavior, Foundations of Business, Statistical Methods, Principles of Economics, Business Analytics

Why Lehigh
Rieker likes a defined path with clear options, so she kept her college plans fairly simple. She assumed she’d attend her hometown school — University of Nevada at Las Vegas — but fate intervened. She visited South Mountain for an admitted student day where she felt like she could see herself here, developing close relationships with a smaller student body. She had few fears of traveling to the East Coast, knowing she had no religious affiliation when she attended a Catholic and then Jewish high school, where she thrived, earning highest honors as valedictorian.

Equity
When Roe vs Wade was overturned, Rieker was shocked by what she saw as religious ideas defining legislative policy. It makes her want to take her interest in accounting and turn a forensic eye on organizations linked to political policies, investigating their finances as tax-exempt entities. In the meantime, Rieker has focused on educating women and inspiring voters.

Samantha Sandhaus ’28
IDEAS

Sandhaus grew up in a food-secure home but developed an eating disorder at the age of 12, growing intimately aware of the effects of malnutrition on children. After several years of medical intervention, she found herself in a better place and channeled her anxiety about food into helping stop hunger in her community. 

At first, that work took the form of volunteering at local food pantries. During her sophomore year, she founded a nonprofit called Feeding Philly that today serves 2,000 families a year and repurposes more than 2,500 pounds of food that would otherwise have gone into the waste stream. This past spring, Hormel Foods Corporation named Sandhaus to its third cohort of 10 Under 20 Food Heroes, where she and other recipients had an opportunity to talk to corporate leaders, earn a grant to support their initiatives, and tour the SPAM Museum. 

Classes: The Science of Environmental Issues, Environmental Geology, Introduction to Engineering, Introduction to Chemical Principles, Calculus III, IDEAS Seminar

Why Lehigh
Sandhaus was part of a rigorous college preparatory program that helped her create a vision for the impact she seeks to make in the world. While she has a number of friends who attend Lehigh, her college list was long and covered both coasts, but Sandhaus kept coming back to Lehigh. Engineering programs at other institutions felt isolated in their approaches whereas IDEAS allows her to focus on engineering and the global health inequities she’s passionate about. She is excited to explore the intersections between engineering, global studies, health, and entrepreneurship. It should come as no surprise that Sandhaus is a multi-talented student who also plays oboe in the orchestra and acts with Mustard and Cheese … and earned scholarships from Lehigh for both.

Equity
Sandhaus seeks to make a difference in the world, helping others use their voices and political power to inspire change. She sees numerous economic, social, and gender inequities where she could be active. She’s honed in on Engineers Without Borders and is part of the Lehigh team working to bring water solutions to several towns in the Dominican Republic. Experiential learning like this allows her to grow as a leader, thinker, Spanish speaker, and future maker, doing as much as she can to help others in need.

Hannah Null ’28
Math and Environmental Studies

Rather than coming directly to Lehigh, Null selected a gap year, joining a semester-long program in Tel Aviv, Israel. She lived on her own in the city, took classes, and worked as an intern at a cybersecurity firm. When the war broke out, she relocated to a kibbutz, an agricultural community in the desert, where she built benches and structures with mud and also assisted in relocated families and farmers impacted by the war. While the conditions were difficult, Null liked the hands-on impact. 

When she returned to Tel Aviv, she attended rallies for the Israeli hostages and victims of sexual assault, calling attention to the gender inequality of the war. For the rest of her gap year, she took a month to explore Europe, worked a variety of jobs, and volunteered. She assisted the art department at a Jewish day school, helping with a piece about the Israeli hostages and Jewish heritage as well as organizing exhibitions with local synagogues and galleries. This year of activities has made it a natural fit for her to get involved on campus with the outing club, Hillel, and Lehigh Friends of Israel.

Classes: Calculus III, Introduction to Environmental Studies, Introduction to Programming, Seminar on Math and Democracy

Why Lehigh
The California native believed that a University of California school was in her future, but she liked the size and academic flexibility of Lehigh. While she is a long way from home, the gap year resolved any fears she might have about distance or being able to manage on her own. Lehigh has resources and support that make it feel like the right fit for all she hopes to accomplish.

Equity
Null has worked in a fitness center as an instructor for group classes, like Barre and water aerobics. She played a variety of sports growing up and began weightlifting in high school. Null has faced moments as an athlete and trainer when men patronize her, over-explain things, and greet her talents with surprise. These negative experiences have motivated her to learn more about strength training, find ways to encourage girls to pursue their fitness goals, and help break outdated fitness stereotypes. She’s also used those moments to show coaches and gym patrons that her hard work pays off.