Humans of Northwood: Alvaro Galan ‘20

I’m from Spain, where I lived for 12 years. Then we moved to Chile, because of my dad’s work. In Chile, I played soccer for a club called One Sports, which is a program that connects Chilean players with American prep-schools and universities. I met Jon Moodey, head coach of the Northwood soccer team, and he offered me an opportunity to go and play for Northwood School. I chose Northwood because Northwood is a very good school to have good academics and also good sports. My first impression was that Northwood was a small community with a lot of people around the world. At first it was tough. New country, new friends — it was difficult. But I think that all the teachers and students receive people very well, which made me feel part of the community. Also, having many people who speak Spanish helped a lot.

My favorite memory is my first goal for Northwood. We were on a road trip to Philadelphia, and we were playing against a very good team, and won 6-1. The thing I dislike about Northwood is the food without a doubt.

I miss all the people, from my close friends, classmates, and some teachers. Although I just stayed for 7 months at Northwood, I made some good connections with a lot of people.

I’m exploring my options to study back in the States, but I’m not sure if that is going to be possible because of the coronavirus. I’m admitted to a university here in Spain, so if my other plans don’t work, I’ll study in Spain.

There are seven siblings in my family. Some people can’t believe that. Having so many brothers has it’s good and bad things. I’m the oldest, so I have an extra responsibility to guide them.

– As told to Hadley Swedlund ‘20