This year a pack of six wolves from CHS’s class of 2021 has splintered away from Claremont to become bears at the University of California, Berkeley in the fall. Daniel Hodde, who spent his freshman and sophomore years at CHS and has lived in Claremont his whole life, makes the tally of Berkeley-bound Claremont natives seven. Two of the future Cal Bears, Claire and Michael Judson, will continue “twinning” at Berkeley while matching in the university’s gold and blue livery. The four remaining soon-to-be students of Berkeley’s class of 2025 are Mason Hillers, Chelsea Lin, Hannah Welke, and Wilfredo (Willy) Zuloaga.
The Wolfpacket contacted the Berkeley-bound seniors and has compiled below some of their written responses to a selection of questions:

The Wolfpacket: What have some of your favorite pastimes been in high school?
Claire Judson: The activity that had by far the greatest impact on me in high school is speech and debate. I joined the El Roble team in eighth grade and since then it has really shaped who I am. Most of my time outside of school has probably been spent at speech and debate meetings, working on cases or speeches, or at tournaments. I am extremely grateful for all of the opportunities it has given me and the lessons it has taught me. Aside from speech and debate, since quarantine I have become really into hiking which I now do whenever I can find the time. I have also started writing original music with my friend Maya Garcia!
Willy Zuloaga: My favorite pastime at CHS has definitely got to be spinning on the color guard team with my amazing teammates. We’ve gotten through high school together; it’s been fun.
Hannah Welke: I’ve definitely always been an involved student. In school I was a part of theatre and it became a big part of my life where I met some of my closest friends. Outside of school, I’ve been a figure skater for 13 years and plan to pursue my competitive career in college. I’ve also tried to balance my work and social life throughout high school and I hang out with my friends whenever I can! When I’m not out or at practice I love to relax by reading.
Chelsea Lin: My favorite pastimes at school were playing cello in the orchestra and triple jumping on the track team. Outside of school I liked watching shows.
Mason Hillers: Outside of class, I always like expressing my creativity. Whether it is through drawing, digital art, or model painting, I like tapping into my artistic side in my free time. When I just want to zone out, I like playing video games and watching random YouTube videos.

The Wolfpacket: What will your most cherished memory be of high school, or what will you miss the most?
Claire Judson: I will honestly probably miss overnight speech and debate tournaments the most. So many fun memories are made on those trips and we unfortunately missed out on a lot of those this year. Same thing with in-person Wolfpacket late nights!
Willy Zuloaga: I think what I’ll miss the most are the lunches I had with my friends. We took naps together, cried together, laughed together; it was a great time.
Hannah Welke: I’ll always look back on my high school years with fond memories, and this is mostly thanks to my amazing friends who were always there to support me. Even though I will meet new people in college, I will always cherish my time spent here with my friends.
Chelsea Lin: I will miss talking with friends every passing period and arriving to class just before we’re marked tardy.
Mason Hillers: One of my favorite memories from high school was the CS Source tournament we had at the end of my 3D media design class. Even though everything about that course was a bit of a trainwreck, I had a ton of fun and met a lot of new friends. The tournament was really the perfect culmination of an unusual class.

The Wolfpacket: What’s one reason why you chose UC Berkeley?
Claire Judson: I chose UC Berkeley for a few reasons. First, I really wanted to go to a UC as I saw myself thriving in a big school environment. I am also super drawn to Berkeley’s opportunities for student journalists; undergraduates interested in journalism can take classes at Berkeley’s renowned graduate school of journalism. Being so close to San Francisco also means access to some pretty sick internships. Having lived in Claremont my whole life, I am also super excited to be living in a super different big city environment.
Willy Zuloaga: I chose Berkeley because of their renowned research. My hope is to one day conduct research of my own, and I know Cal will help pave the way for me.
Hannah Welke: Berkeley was honestly never one of my top choices nor my “dream school.” I think I never considered it because it is so competitive and thought I wouldn’t even get in. When weighing out all my options, Berkeley was clearly the best fit for me and I was really happy with the program I was accepted into. Along with that, my dad attended Cal so there was that added layer of sentiment on top of it all.
Chelsea Lin: I chose UC Berkeley because of its academic excellence and because I love the diverse culture that the city holds.
Mason Hillers: There are many great things about Berkeley, but what drew me to it most were the research opportunities. As someone interested in science, I am thrilled to have such tremendous resources available to me.

The Wolfpacket: What will you major in at Berkeley, or if you’re undecided, what are some of your interests? Do you have any idea of what career you’d like to pursue?
Claire Judson: Currently I am undeclared at Berkeley in the College of Letters and Science. I have a lot of ideas of what I want to do and am trying to keep an open mind. However, right now I think I will most likely major in history and/or sociology and minor in journalism, education, and/or Spanish. My dream is to pursue journalism, but I am also interested in law, politics, and education.
Willy Zuloaga: I will be majoring in biochemistry. With this degree I’m hoping to conduct my own research on something related to virology.
Hannah Welke: I’m majoring in environmental policy and doing pre-law. I hope to become an environmental lawyer or work some sort of government job!
Chelsea Lin: I’m interested in pursuing computer science or business in college, on the path to UI/UX, although I am still considering many other options
Mason Hillers: Although I am still figuring out exactly what to do with myself, I am currently majoring in microbial biology. I want to research pathogens and pursue the medical applications of microbiology.

The Wolfpacket: What about college are you most looking forward to?
Claire Judson: In college, I am most looking forward to exploring myself and my interests. I’m super hyped to take classes on more niche subjects that I am super interested in and maybe even find myself fascinated by something completely new. I am also super excited about the opportunities that Berkeley has to offer to student journalists.
Willy Zuloaga: What I’m most excited for at Cal is the independence. In high school everything is structured and teachers hold your hand throughout, but I’ve always tended to take things in my own hands, so I’m excited for that freedom.
Hannah Welke: Definitely meeting new people and stepping out of my comfort zone. I hope that in college I will discover new interests and learn about topics that genuinely interest me.
Chelsea Lin: I’m most looking forward to meeting new friends and experiencing living somewhat independently. I am excited to explore life and food in a new city.
Mason Hillers: I am most excited to further my interests. While I have liked learning about a broad range of topics in high school, I can not wait to study much more specific courses that really intrigue me. Perhaps along that way, I will discover interests I never knew I had.

The Wolfpacket: What’s one piece of advice you have for a freshman at CHS?
Claire Judson: One piece I have for freshmen is to always keep it real with yourself and those around you. Also have fun and don’t stress over things that won’t matter in a month.
Willy Zuloaga: Freshman: DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP! High school is hard, and it’s perfectly okay to ask for help.
Hannah Welke: Take every opportunity that’s presented to you and make the most out of it. High school is so short so have no regrets! But with that being said, prioritize your mental health above all. In the long run, one class will not make or break your life so don’t beat yourself up over the little things.
Chelsea Lin: Take it easy freshman year because looking back I tried so much harder than I needed to as a freshman. As long as you don’t procrastinate, junior year should be fine but knowing that most of you will, you will still make it out the other side.
Mason Hillers: Do not let college applications dominate your life. I have seen and heard about so many people that choose every course, extracurricular activity, and hobby based on what will help them get into a prestigious university. Do what interests you, don’t stress yourself out, and always put your mental health first. College is not the most important thing in life and no matter how you choose to lead your high school years, as long as you put in hard work, there will be plenty of great colleges that will love to have you.

The Wolfpacket: (An extra question about the Judsons:) Did having a twin sibling possibly going to the same university impact your decision to go to Berkeley in any way? Do you think being at the same university will impact your relationship as twins in any way?
Claire Judson: Michael and I were beyond excited and honestly shocked that we both got into Berkeley. We never really planned on going to college together, but the fact that we both got in definitely played a big role in us both deciding to go there.
It’s hard to say if going to the same school will impact our relationship as twins. For one, we were admitted to separate colleges; Michael is in the School of Engineering while I will be in the College of Letters and Science. Berkeley is also a large school with a huge student body so it is unlikely we will ever even cross paths by accident. However it will be super nice to be going up to live in Northern California with Michael because we get along pretty well (depending on the topic of conversation) and I feel super grateful to have our relationship and the support that comes along with it.