Top 20 senior , Kiena Tan balances her school life along with her life as a cheerleader, worker, and co-president of the Key Club. 

Recently, Tan has officially committed to the University of California Los Angeles after having to choose from other highly regarded colleges t such as Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, the University of California Santa Barbara , Cal Lutheran, the University of Portland, the University of Hawaii, and the University of California San Diego.

“I chose UCLA because that is where my brother went,¨ Tan said. ¨the way he spoke about UCLA made it seem like he had a lot of fun, making me want to attend there myself after high school.” 

With only a 14% acceptance rate, receiving an acceptance from UCLA is no small accomplishment. This year SAT and ACT scores are hardly being accounted for when college admissions are reviewed, making it harder for students to differentiate themselves from other applicants. Nevertheless, Tan caught their attention and was welcomed.

Aside from her time as an academically achieving student, Tran enjoys spending her free time practicing and performing with Buena’s cheer team, as she participated in the majority of the cheer performances during Buena´s football season.

“I really wanted to maximize my time as a senior, so for me that meant doing cheer with my friend June,” Tan said. ¨I really enjoyed cheer this year although it challenged me academically because of the time that practices took.¨

Although time management has become such an important factor for her with such a busy schedule, Kiena still manages to maintain a 4.6 weighted gpa placing her in the top 20 students within her class. 

“I have been teaching Kiena for two years now,” AP English Language and Literature teacher Kelly Herrera said. “She has been a perfectionist with all of her assignments and is very appreciative of all the advice and guidance that I give her.” 

Tan is also a part of Buena’s key club, a community service based group that does activities to give back and support the Ventura community such as beach clean ups and food drives. She has been a member throughout all of her years at Buena and during senior year, she became the club’s vice president.

“It is a venue for me to do my part for my community as a young adult,” Tan said. “My favorite was volunteering at the food pantry because my family has been through desperate times before so it was very meaningful for me to give to those who are in similar situations that I once was in.”

Her time spent with the key club is not the only time that she spends out of school assisting people. Tan also is an employee at Urbane Cafe, where she works as a cashier and waiter taking orders and running them out to customers.

“I have been working with Kiena for around 10 months now,” senior and Urbane Cafe employee Mya Aguilar said. “She is one of the most patient people I have ever met and she is always willing to stay and help others.She really does bring out the best in me when we work together.”

As her senior year comes to an end with graduation approaching, Tan will move onto the next chapter of her life at UCLA, continuing to build the future that she desires.

“I am really excited to start my college career,” Tan said “When the semester starts I will be studying physiological science because I want to become a physician’s assistant after I graduate”