Addam Shover is ranked sixth in his senior class at Mountain Valley High School in Rumford. He plans to attend the University of Maine in Orono to study computer science. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal
RUMFORD — For most students, making the Top 10 in their graduating high school class requires a lot of work.
Not for Addam Shover of Mountain Valley High School in Rumford.
“I don’t have to work very hard,” Shover said. “It comes naturally. I just do what I’m told.”
Shover pays little attention to being at the top of his senior class academically. “I do all my assignments and that’s about it.”
But there is one place where Shover shines: Jeff Bailey’s computer science classroom.
“Addam always finds his way through the problem even if he comes across a challenge,” said Bailey, the technology and computer science teacher at Mountain Valley. “Addam is very resilient. He does not give up easy.”
Bailey got to know Shover when Shover participated in an advanced math class designed for middle school students when he was in the eighth grade.
“Addam has always been advanced with his math skills, which allows him to see shortcuts that others can’t,” Bailey said.
“Math comes easy to me,” Shover said. “I break down the problem into smaller steps and work backwards.”
“I struggle in English,” he said. “Reading books is not my thing, but math is.” He was the only junior in his calculous class. The other seven were seniors.
Shover has used his math skills to excel in the world of computer science. “Both math and playing video games is all about problem solving,” he said. “I am a good problem solver.”
He likes video games and computer programming and got a perfect score on his Advanced Placement computer science principles exam. The perfect score should allow Shover’s credits to transfer even to colleges with the toughest standards.
He said he likes the idea of programming because you start from the beginning and build from there. “It’s like telling a 5-year-old what to do.”
Shover will continue to study computer science at the University of Maine in Orono.
“My goal is to create video games,” he said. “My favorite game is ‘Hollow Knight,’ which was designed by a team of three guys and that is something that I would like to do.”
Bailey said Shover is ready for college-level work. “I don’t have any other classes to offer him,” the teacher said.
He said one aspect of his class in which Shover struggles is when asked to give a presentation in front of the class. “Addam will slip down in his chair and ask, ‘Do I have to?'”
Mountain Valley Principal Tom Danylik said, “Addam is a very shy young man.”
Shover’s advice to incoming high school students who would like to be Top 10 students is “figure out the goal and work backwards from there, do all your assignments and ask questions. Some people are scared to ask questions, but they should not be.”
“Simple as that,” he said.
He is ranked sixth in his graduating class. “My dad is very proud of me,” Shover said.
He said, “I put enough effort in to get it done and that’s about it. I don’t do optional assignments. That’s probably why I’m sixth and not first. Some people try harder, I guess.”
This is the seventh article in a series featuring high school seniors as graduation season nears. In the series, the Sun Journal will profile a randomly chosen top 10 student or the equivalent from 16 high schools in central and western Maine.
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