LVHS Senior Landon Lindner Lands Interview with M.I.T.

 

Landon Lindner’s recipe for scholastic excellence starts with a healthy amount of curiosity, adding a willingness to try anything, and topped by perseverance with an intense desire to finish what he starts.

 

“The main thing that drives me is when you complete something,” Landon says. “I like the satisfaction when completing a particular problem. I can’t start something and leave it off to the side.”

 

That mindset has taken Lucerne Valley High School senior Landon to a variety of extra-curricular activities and areas of study. In elementary school he was active in the Drama Club, often starring in theater productions, and in middle school he joined AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), where he honed his study skills and solidified his college goals.

 

In high school he has flourished in the school’s popular FFA (Future Farmers of America) program — he’s president of the Lucerne Valley FFA chapter — and was selected captain of the varsity soccer team. Last year he was recognized by Mojave Desert Career Pathways as its CTE (Career Technical Education) student of the year. He’s a top math and science student but recently tapped his English composition skills and won a VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) “Voice of Democracy” oral essay competition. 

 

With high school graduation looming this June, Landon has been busy applying to colleges. He has applied to a total of nine top colleges including Stanford, Harvey Mudd and four University of California Schools in California and Harvard, Cornell and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on the East Coast.

 

M.I.T. liked what they saw and on Tuesday, January 26 Landon interviewed with an M.I.T. representative via phone.

 

“It went super,” Landon says. “It doesn’t guarantee I get accepted. I still have to go through the application process, but I think it went well.”

 

Landon is a rarity for Lucerne Valley, a rural Southern California desert town with a median household income considerably less than the communities where Ivy League students typically come from.

 

“I don’t think I’ve ever had a student get an interview with M.I.T. before,” says Linda Schlenz, who has taught Lindner several times through her 21 years with the district. Currently he is in her English class. “Landon’s awesome!”

 

“This kid doesn’t know how to do anything but pave the way,” says LVHS Principal Kelly Boeing.

Landon was introduced to drafting in his Ag Mechanics class and is planning on pursuing a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering followed by a master’s in the same discipline.

 

“I want to push myself for a master’s and find a job in the automotive or aerospace industries,” Landon says.

 

“Landon meets new opportunities as a challenge and excels at problem-solving,” says FFA advisor Troy Van Bavel, who along with Danielle Hickman teaches Agriculture/Science at the high school.  “Landon serves as a role model to his peers and underclassman. Over the years he is grown in his leadership skills and interpersonal skills and it's been a pleasure to have Landon as an active FFA member and serving as this year's chapter president.”

 

"Since elementary school Landon has had high expectations for himself,” says Lucerne Valley Elementary School teacher Kay Hall, who has served as an advisor to the school’s Drama Club. “He would always strive for the highest grades and would dedicate himself to the best drama club performances he could give. I am not surprised that MIT is interested in him." “Landon played his roles with gusto and entertained the audience in every role he played,” adds LVES teacher Liu Hirschhorn, who also served as a drama club adviser during Landon’s time at the elementary school. “Landon tackled every challenge fearlessly and with enthusiasm! We were so happy to see him grow year to year.”

 

“I guess I was all over the place,” Landon says.

 

Even in what little spare time he has his, he’s still expanding his knowledge. Lindner is restoring a classic 1976 Datsun 280Z with his mother’s boyfriend, an auto mechanic who works in the retail automotive industry. “You’re always learning while you’re working on it.”

 

Lindner lives with his mother, Keri, and brother, Noah, a LVHS freshman. His father Daniel recently served as assistant coach of the high school’s soccer team.

 

With his senior year just a few months away from being over, it’s a waiting game for Lindner to find out if he is bound for Cambridge, Mass., another East Coast locale — or staying a little closer to his hometown. He encourages other students from his small town to take a chance on dreaming big. 

 

“I want to encourage the younger kids to apply to these bigger schools. You don’t know if you don’t try. Take that chance. Any chance is better than no chance.”