Whiz Kid: Shawn Conroy

When Christopher Conroy built a backyard ice rink at his home in New London two years ago, he never dreamed his eight-year-old son Shawn would turn out to be a whiz on skates. “He just took to it,” says Conroy. Now he’s 10, Shawn plays for the southeastern Connecticut Seahawks Youth Hockey team. He’s not only an ace on the ice, however. This fifth grader is Nathan Hale Elementary School’s Student of the Month and he’s about to be honored as a New London Rotary Student of the Year.  

You play for the Connecticut Seahawks Youth Hockey team. Are there many other students your age playing ice hockey?

In my school, I am the only student that plays hockey and I like to wear my jersey to school to help represent for my team when we’re going to go and play some games. Every weekend I usually play two or three games, but since it’s coming around to the end of the year I’m down to one.

What position do you play?

Usually, coach plays me at right wing, left wing, or center.

Are your worried you’re going to lose some teeth? Those are pretty tough positions and ice hockey is a rough sport.

Hockey is violent but at the squirt level, there’s no checking. You just play the game of hockey and have fun doing it. I did get a concussion not too long ago, but I’m fine.

What do you do when the season’s over?

I play lacrosse in the spring. I used to play for Norwich. Now I’m playing for Waterford. I like hockey better than lacrosse, but I need something to do in the spring and part of the summer, so that’s why I chose lacrosse.

Why do you think your teacher nominated you as student of the month?

I think I was chosen as student of the month because I’m a good student and my teacher likes me. And I’m very patient at waiting and I get my papers done when I need to get them done.

You’re also in the School Enrichment Model Initiative Program. What does that involve?

The summer enrichment program is for gifted and talented students, for students who score well on the CMT tests. We get invited because of our grades.  We do projects for science, experiments, and we focus on greenhouse gasses and how they can affect the planet.

What’s your favorite subject?

Math would be my favorite subject. I like to do math because I like to deal with numbers. Science is fun and it’s exciting and [deals with] new concepts, but I really like math.

You recently took a test given by John Hopkins University and scored very well on the math section. What was the purpose of the test itself?

The test was to see how gifted and talented each individual was and to see if we could apply for John Hopkins University when we grow up to go to college.

Do you think you might want to go there?

Yeah, I think I might want to go to John Hopkins University. It sounds very fun and exciting to go to. I think I might pick that as a college for my future.