Amy Olsen

Curiosity and a love of learning are the clear driving forces in Amy Olsen’s life. “I spend a lot of time checking out books from the library to teach myself random things,” says the high school junior from Barrington High School in Barrington, Illinois, and a recent winner of our biweekly Think the Vote debate contest. “I have comprehensively taught myself basic Astronomy and Korean,” she notes.

Among Amy’s favorite books are The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Dance of Thieves, and It Ends With Us. Amy also loves music, and her favorite artists are artists are The Blue Stones, Arctic Monkeys, Blackpink, and Thin Lizzy. In her free time, she also enjoys riding horses and playing video games.

Amy’s favorite classes are AP Government and Physics, and as far as extracurricular activities go, she is involved in UNICEF Club, 60010 Feeds Kids, Key Club, and Class Board. She is also active on several social media platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, and Twitter.

As a future voter, the three most important issues to Amy are climate change, voting accessibility, and improving the justice system, and her future plans include studying Pediatric Psychology or Aerospace Engineering. “My dream would be to work in the space industry,” says Amy, “But if not, I want to work with kids and families.”

And who is Amy’s hero? Definitely her mom, she says. “She was a stay-at-home mom of five kids for most of her life, but eventually decided she wasn’t satisfied and decided to make her mark,” says Amy. “She began in her 40s by helping teach special needs students before getting her own degree in teaching and now she is a middle school English and social studies teacher. She taught me it’s never too late to chase your dreams.”