Ashley Peake (A’19) grew up in Winston-Salem and attended a relatively small middle school. When she and her family were considering high schools, Salem Academy immediately stood out because of its small class sizes and close connections among students and teachers.

“Salem isn’t your stereotypical ‘cookie-cutter’ girls’ prep school. The diversity of backgrounds and opinions and interests is something you don’t find at many other private schools,” Ashley said. Salem gives you a place to be yourself confidently and authentically.”

The Academy also is widely known for offering a rigorous college preparatory program, individualized support, a nurturing community—and its STEAM focus. Ashley is a particularly strong proponent of the Academy’s STEAM focus.

“In the modern world, having a real understanding of STEM fields is increasingly important. With the growing prevalence of AI and other big-data algorithms, STEM is hard to avoid regardless of your field. Having a strong background and intuition for how these tools work will prepare students for whatever careers they go into,” she said. Salem’s connection of the classic STEM fields with Art (STEAM) is particularly unique.”

“So much research has shown that studying math and art together allows for a richer understanding of both. Also, I came into high school thinking I was more interested in art and literature than math or computer science,” Ashley added. The way STEAM is emphasized at Salem made math more accessible. Now, I’ve devoted my whole career to mathematics and how it can be applied to solve real world problems.”

She also has advice for other girls and their families who are considering Salem Academy—and especially for those who may be on the fence about deciding to attend.

“Salem gives you a community like no other high school will. Academically, it will prepare you for anything you could want to do, but I think the community is the most special part,” Ashley said. I have never felt closer to my teachers and my classmates than I did at Salem. That kind of community gave me a place to grow as both a student and a person.”

In addition, she has plenty of great memories of her long list of experiences at Salem Academy outside the rigor of the classroom.

“Some of my favorite memories of Salem come from my time on the robotics team. My sophomore year, our team competed in the FTC World Championships in Houston, Texas,” Ashley said. The week we spent at the championship remains one of the best weeks of my life, and it was incredibly influential in shaping my academic and professional goals.”

Today, Ashley is pursuing her academic and professional goals by working toward a Ph.D. in social and engineering systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Before moving to Cambridge, she graduated from Wake Forest University with a BS degree in applied mathematics. As an undergrad at Wake Forest, Ashley had the opportunity to do research at Yale University, Brown University, and Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute.

Although Ashley has studied at several of the country’s biggest names in education, she still points to her remarkable educational experience at Salem Academy.

“From my first day in undergrad, I felt prepared to deeply engage with my course material, to contribute to class discussions, to manage my time well, to write and present effectively, and to confidently talk with professors about their research,” she said. During two of my Jan Terms at Salem, I had the chance to work in a lab at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine.”

“Because I came into college with research experience, I was able to start doing my own research much earlier than many of my peers, setting me up well for graduate school,” she added. Even now, the confidence, sense of self, and determination that I learned at Salem Academy are what have pushed me to do well in grad school, especially in a male-dominated field.”