David Guerrero with his parents on senior night earlier this year. Photo courtesy of David Guerrero.
Getting into Dartmouth is quite a feat. Going with a full-ride scholarship as a first-generation college student makes the accomplishment that much more special.
David Guerrero, valedictorian of W.H. Adamson High School, will be doing just that in the fall. To make it to the New Hampshire campus, he has participated in a variety of extracurricular activities, from wrestling, track, and soccer to academic competitions, on top of keeping up with classes.
“I tried really hard to get to this point,” he said. “And it’s honestly an honor because I think if I wasn’t at Adamson, I wouldn’t have any of those opportunities I have now.”
Guerrero also credits his parents as his motivation to work so hard.
“My parents left Mexico. They left their families behind. They left all the money they had behind. They left this house behind. They left everything behind to give me an opportunity to actually live, and it’s insane to me,” he said. “I see my parents as a huge inspiration, because of their efforts, and I feel like me being here is actually proof of that now.”
Although Guerrero said he has always had an interest in technology, an experience with ChatGPT that he shared in his application essay fuels his future goals.
After a typical workout, his dad couldn’t catch his breath. The symptoms persisted, escalating to a tightness in his chest and stomach.
“Then he just couldn’t handle it anymore, and he started getting worried, scared,” Guerrero said. “So he asked ChatGPT what he could be feeling in that moment, and then it just told him to go to the hospital immediately.”
Those symptoms were early signs of a heart attack. His dad was able to follow the advice to not only go to the hospital, but also to take an aspirin.
“Since ChatGPT told him to take an aspirin, it gave him a little more time to actually get to the hospital,” Guerrero said. “And the doctor talked about that as well. That if he didn’t take an aspirin, he probably would have died.”
That experience has helped tailor what he wants to pursue for his future goals, studying computer science and mathematics with a focus on artificial intelligence. He hopes to later pursue his master’s at Stanford and create a startup.
“I want to make something that can actually benefit the world and not just add stakeholder value. I want to make something meaningful.”
