The Next Big Thing(s): Alec and JK Ruark
Alec and JK Ruark are used to doing things together. As identical twins, seniors at Shanghai American School, baseball teammates, musical theater performers, and soon-to-be Georgia Tech students, they have built a high school experience that is equal parts shared and distinctly their own. They arrived at SAS bringing with them a life shaped by international moves, a love of performance and sport, and a growing curiosity about computer science. They leave SAS with a baseball championship, a community, a future in computing, and a brotherly bond that has only gotten stronger. Next year, both Alec and JK will head to Georgia Tech, a top ten computer science school in the United States, to study computer science.
You’re both known for baseball, musical theater, and computer science. What do those different activities bring out in you?
JK: Each one of those activities brings out a different third of my personality. Baseball is a lot more physical, computer science and game development make me engage in a lot more problem solving, and musical theater is a lot more creative. Even though they seem really different at first, each one helps me complement a different part of myself.
Alec: I think they help me fulfill different parts of myself. Baseball and physical activity are really important for relieving stress, but being able to express myself creatively through game design, musical theater, singing, and acting is also really valuable. If I’m missing one of those things, it feels like a part of me is missing.
As identical twins, people probably assume you’re very similar. Where are you the same, and where are you different?
Alec: They’re not wrong to think our interests are really similar. But within those interests, we have very different personalities and very different ways of approaching things. In theater, Mr. Holland described my acting as more emotional and grounded, while JK’s is more effervescent. I think that’s a good example of how we can love the same things but bring something different to them.
JK: One funny example of how we’re similar is that most of our test scores and grades are pretty similar. Our IB curriculums are exactly the same too, just with some different teachers. So, there are definitely parts of us that are very similar, but the way we approach things is different.
Tell us about the moment you found out you both got into Georgia Tech.
Alec: We opened the decision letters pretty much as soon as we got them. It was stressful seeing the decision waiting in big, bold font. We pressed open at the same time, and when we saw we had been accepted, it felt like all that stress was released. Our parents were behind us watching our screens, and I think they felt the same way.
JK: We were sitting at our computers, and our parents were standing behind us watching intensely. When I saw “Congrats, you’ve been accepted,” I remember thinking, whoa, this is a pretty momentous occasion. Alec and my parents were a lot more outwardly excited. I just kept reading the letter because I couldn’t believe what had happened.
What does it mean to take this next step together?
JK: Before our college search even started, we decided we wanted to be close to each other. It’s been a great experience having that built-in support system everywhere we’ve gone. Even when we move to a new country or a new school, I’ve always had Alec next to me. Going to college together feels similar in that way, but also different because Alec will be the only family I have on that campus.
Alec: When we made our college lists, we made sure every school was somewhere we could both go and be happy. Every school had to be able to fulfill our interests and make us feel excited to be there. That made it really clear that we wanted to stay together for the next four years too.
What advice would you give to younger students at SAS?
JK: Don’t spread yourself too thin, but make sure you give yourself the space and time to pursue things you genuinely enjoy and love. I think that is the fastest path to fulfillment and to really enjoying your time at SAS and in life in general.
Alec: Surround yourself with people who bring you forward and push you upward. Being surrounded by so many bright and kind people is really important. Find your people so you can feel like you fit in, grow as a person, and help others grow as well.
Congrats, Alec and JK! Georgia Tech is lucky to have you both!
