This is the eleventh of a series of 20 profiles of The Gazette’s Best and Brightest Class of 2020.

After happening upon a club meeting held in her English classroom for Colorado Young Leaders, Paige Caley is now a dedicated volunteer who has worked with numerous nonprofit organizations. “It opened up a whole new world to me,” Caley wrote in her Best and Brightest essay.

The William J. Palmer High School senior, who was born and raised in Colorado, is the daughter of Keith and Allison Caley. She is a 4.6 GPA student, a member of The National Honor Society, The International Baccalaureate Program, and a National History Day State Competitor.

She has been a part of several service projects through Colorado Young Leaders. One of the most notable projects that her chapter is involved withinwith is with a nonprofit organization called the Tipi-Raisers which aids the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

When speaking about her service projects, Caley shared “It changed me a lot because I have realized how fortunate I am and how I can use that to help other people. Doing these service projects has made me happier.”

Caley now co-runs the CYL Pikes Peak chapter and organized a fundraiser for the reservation called Change for Pine Ridge. Another passion project for Caley is volunteering at a nonprofit organization in Calhan that takes care of donkeys called Saving the Wild American Burrow. “One of my proudest accomplishments is being able to help people with my service projects while maintaining a high GPA and enjoying high school,” Caley said.

In addition to her service projects, Caley is fascinated by the world of engineering and will pursue a biomedical engineering degree at the University of Colorado Boulder. She said that she is drawn to the field of biomedical engineering “because it combines medicine with science and robotics.”

One of her interests is studying innovation, specifically, stem cell research and neural engineering. This year, she wrote a research essay about stem cell research for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease as part of completing the International Baccalaureate program.

An obstacle that Caley has faced is enduring doubt and skepticism about being a woman pursuing a degree in engineering. However, the words of discouragement only fuel her motivation. “It heightens my desire to complete an engineering degree,” she said.

Caley’s advice for young women who want to study engineering is to “Just go for it. You should follow your dreams.” Despite the naysayers, Caley receives support from her family, friends and her mathematics teacher, Kelly Cline, who wrote “Paige is bright, hard-working, motivated, responsible, and conscientious,” in a letter of recommendation.

Closer to the Colorado Springs community, Caley is a member of Student Council at William J. Palmer High School. She is frequently involved in community clean-ups in the downtown Colorado Springs-area. She assumed the role of Treasurer for Student Council for the annual Care and Share drive. In November, she allocated funds so that the Student Council could prepare full Thanksgiving dinners for 31 Palmer High School families.

Additionally, Caley is an accomplished cellist playing in both the Pikes Peak Honor Orchestra and the Palmer Chamber Orchestra. She is a strong French speaker and held a part-time job at Terra Verde, a local boutique.

The coronavirus has certainly impacted Caley’s senior year and prevented her and her friends from enjoying classic senior experiences such as prom and graduation. “When you picture your senior year, this is not it,” she says. Despite the cancellation of senior year events, she is looking forward to beginning her first semester at CU Boulder in the fall to make her dreams become a reality.

William J. Palmer High School

College Plans: University of Colorado, Boulder

Parents: Keith and Allison Caley

Other: National Honor Society; International Baccalaureate Program; National History Day State Competitor; Academic Letter, Extended Essay

Paige Caley. William J. Palmer High School Class of 2020. 

Best and Brightest 2020