Senior Charlotta Schreuder has spent her high school career balancing an array of activities, from running, to art, to music. 

Schreuder picked up running in the fifth grade when she joined a running group called “Girls on the Run.” Since then, her passion for running has not faded. 

After her first cross country race her freshman year, Schreuder was welcomed onto the varsity team, which she said was “unexpected.” 

“Essentially, the [varsity] team had all graduated and it was totally rebooting the team,” Schreuder said. 

One of Schreuder’s best memories since joining the team was traveling to Boise, Idaho, to run in the Nike Cross Regionals Midwest. “I didn’t place, but it was just a fun race,” she said. 

In addition to cross country, Schreuder also runs long-distance races for the track team.  

When talking about her class load, Schreuder said digital learning has been “different, but it’s manageable.” 

On top of her athletic commitments, Schreuder is involved in La Salle’s art program, as she is currently enrolled in 3D Ceramics. 

Due to COVID-19, the logistics of Schreuder’s art class look significantly different than the traditional model, as she said it has been one of her more difficult classes to do online. “We get projects and we make them and then we bring them to school,” Schreuder said.

During her sophomore year, Schrueder earned a Scholastic Art and Writing award for an art piece about climate change that depicted a polar bear on a sheet of ice. She said she was inspired to create artwork about climate change due to her passion for the outdoors. “I like nature a lot and I always have,” she said. 

In addition to her ceramics class, Schreuder has been a part of La Salle’s German program since her freshman year. “The last two years are honors [courses] but it’s not that much different from earlier in high school,” she said. “You just learn more complex stuff.”

Schreuder has lived in Northeast Portland her whole life, frequently going on hikes with her parents. 

Since La Salle’s transition to online learning, Schreuder has started and ended each day with a walk, which has become a staple in her routine. 

“A week before Christmas break [it] was harder for me to focus, but I can pretty much stay focused [usually],” she said. “I like going outside [in the] afternoons after my classes.”

Before going to La Salle, Schreuder attended All Saints School, which consisted of an era in which she took up violin lessons before transitioning to the viola.

Since switching instruments, Schreuder took on an opportunity to play the viola for the Metropolitan Youth Symphony. “I like the sound of [the viola], and it brings me a lot of joy,” she said. 

Due to the impact of COVID-19, Schreuder’s participation in The Metropolitan Youth Symphony has looked different this year, with the orchestra resorting to Zoom calls and sectional recordings. “We do recordings and then they put them together,” she said. 

As for what the future holds, Schreuder is thinking about attending Oregon State University to further her interest in neuroscience.