Ryan Hopson of Olive Branch is one of the 119 seniors that grace the halls of The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science.

By day, he steps up as the vice president of the Standardized Testing Examination Preparation Club (STEP Club); by night, he steps into the role of secretary of the Blue Knights Step Team, stomping and clapping his troubles away in upstairs Hogarth Auditorium. He and his team’s work pays off, as they have won first place in two consecutive years at the MSMS hosted Fright Night event.

Ryan attends research at Mississippi State University, working under Dr. Hansen to learn programming languages like C++ and how to implement data structures (whatever that is). He hopes this will give him a good idea on what to look forward when he gets to college.

Like all seniors, Ryan is going through the process of applying to college. He’s looking into Carnegie Mellon, University of Washington, UCLA, USC and pretty much any other UC school there is.

I asked the busy emissary for an interview. He said, “I guess.” So here we go:

Rebecca: “So where are you from?”

Ryan: *Leans towards the recording device* “Clarksdale, Mississippi.”

Rebecca: “You don’t have to talk into it.”

Ryan: “Oh. And Arkansas.”

Rebecca: “Wait seriously? You’re from Arkansas?”

Ryan: “Ha yeah, no. But I was, you know. In Vegas.”

Rebecca: “Wait seriously? Hayden and I were born in Vegas!” *Hayden Schroader is sitting next to me during this exclusive interview.*

Ryan: “Yeah … I wasn’t born there.”

Rebecca: “Well. Here we all are now. What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas, I guess.”

Ryan: “Yeah. But they love me. My parents.”

Rebecca: “And why wouldn’t they? Just because you’re born in Vegas- do you think all people born in Vegas aren’t loved?

Haydn (sitting next to me): “I was born in Vegas.”

Ryan: “I didsn- sn- snot say that!”

Next Question.

Rebecca: “Do you play an instrument?”

Ryan: “No.”

Rebecca: “Okay then.”

Next Question.

Rebecca: “What’s your favorite food?”

Ryan: “Cookies n’ Crème ice cream.”

Rebecca: “That it?”

Ryan: “Yah.”

Rebecca: “It’s not really a food. It’s like a weird… sort of… solid-liquidy sort of deal.”

Ryan: “But… Both way, it brings me happiness, and that’s what it me food (the recording became somewhat distorted here, but I’m sure that’s what he said.)”

Rebecca: “Do you prefer the solid or liquid form?”

Ryan: “Liquid. All the way.”

Rebecca: *I give him a skeptical and judging look.* “Mkay.”

Ryan: “Wh- wait, what? Like of cookies n’ crème ice cream?”

Rebecca: “Yeah!”

Ryan: “Yeah, liquid! I prefer milkshake over like a sundae-”

Rebecca: “Ohhh!”

Ryan: “That’s what I’m thinking of!”

Rebecca: “I was thinking of when like, the ice cream melts, you know-“

Ryan: “Oh?”

Rebecca: “And like-“

Ryan: “Just like, sitting in a pool of-“

Rebecca: “Yeah! So solid or liquid?”

Ryan: “Solid?” *laughs nervously*

Rebecca: “Yeah, there you go! That was the right answer.”

Ryan: “Oh, ok. There’s a right answer? What if- what if… It’s about what I want.”

Rebecca: “This interview isn’t about you, Ryan.”

Ryan: “YES, IT IS-“

Pft, no it’s not. Anyways, next Question.

Rebecca: *ever so eloquently* “Alright, Ryan, What do you- what do you like- what are your hobbies; what do you like to do in your free time?”

Ryan: Uhhh. Playin’ video games is my hobby. And eating froot-loops. Yeah, and sleep.”

Rebecca:  “Is that it?”

Ryan: “Uh, yeah, because you didn’t ask me what I really love doing.”

Rebecca: “What do you like to do?”

Ryan: “I really love volunteering!”

Damare Baker (who recently sat down at this point of the interview): “That’s a lie.”

Next Question.

Rebecca: “Okay do you have any closing remarks; perhaps any- any shout outs?”

Ryan: “Okay, shout to-“

Haydn (still sitting by) : “Haydn is awesome.”

Ryan: “Shout out to-“

Damare (also still sitting by): “Whaddap!”

Ryan: *laughing* “I can’t- Stoooop! Wait- shout out to my-“

Damare: “Yeet!”

Haydn: *laughing*

Ryan: “Shout out-“

Rebecca: “Ehyouknow it doesn’t have to be a shout out.”

Ryan: “-to my mom.”

Rebecca: “What’s her name?”

Ryan: *laughing* “Mom?”
Rebecca: “Yeah, your mom!”

Ryan: “…that’s her name… Shout out to my dad.”

Damare: “Yeet!”

Rebecca: “What’s his name?”

Ryan: [crickets]

Rebecca: [crickets]

Ryan: “Dad.” *laughing* “I can’t call him nothin’ else!”

Rebecca: *snickering* “Well – what’s his last name? Do they have a first and last name?”

Ryan: *still laughing; pull it together man* “They never told me!?”

Haydn: *chortling* “They never told me!”

Rebecca: “Are you serious? Boy! How’d you fill out the CommonApp?”

Ryan: *inconsolably laughing*

Rebecca: “Wait seriously, how did you fill out the CommonApp?”

Ryan: *This dude is just. Laughing. So hard.* “They filled it out for me!”

Long story short, their names are Trisha and Derek Hopson. Shout out to Trisha and Derek Hopson.