Hi, I'm Nyssa Woods

I'm a homeschooled High Schooler. Currently, I'm 14 years old.
I'm a Junior with Seton Home Study School.

I have had really fine years in homeschooling. I've won or placed in several very interesting local, national, and international academic contests. I've also received some interesting press.

• Fall 1998- Participant in Junior Summit 1998.
• On March 6, 1998, I was honored at an awards luncheon by the Illinois State Organization of the Daughters of the American Revolution as the State winner of the Christopher Columbus Essay Contest. The DAR ladies have this big award luncheon every year where they honor the statewide winners of all of their contests. At this luncheon, I was also informed that I had won the seven state Division and thus my essay on the Legacy of Christopher Columbus would be going to national judging.

• March 6, 1998 was a good day for me. It was also regional History Fair. I sent my paper, Speedy and Energetic Measures, for judging. But, since the DAR luncheon was in Peoria, and this history fair was in Macomb, I couldn't be in both places at once. However, I did get a Superior rating at regional, and did compete at the State History Expo on May 14, 1998 in Springfield, Illinois, bringing home a Superior rating at State.

• December 22, 1997. I was the subject of a feature article in my hometown newspaper, The Jacksonville Journal Courier as part of their series on outstanding area teenagers.

• My article, Remember Virden, was published in the December 1997 issue of Illinois History magazine. The article was about the Virden Massacre of 1898. Illinois History is published by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Because of this article, I was named as one of only 14 students in the State of Illinois to achieve Illinois Student Historian of the Year.

• On December 6, 1997, I was notified that I had won the Daughters of the American Revolution's Christopher Columbus essay competition at the Chapter Level and that my essay would be going to state. This is the same essay that's listed above as winning at State.

• Grand prize, NASA Ames Research Center's 1997 Space Settlement Design Contest
  My project SCORE:Self Contained Offworld Residential Environment is on the NASA site.
  1996's winners were from Argentina. It feels good to bring the grand prize back to the USA.
  On September 23, 1997, my family and I toured AMES Research Center in Moffett Field
  as part of my prize from NASA. It was a lovely day that will live forever
  in my memory.

• Superior rating at Western Illinois Regional History Fair and
  Superior rating at Illinois History Expo '97
  with my paper, The Wild Regiment, a history of the 101st Illinois Volunteers,
  a regiment from Morgan County Illinois (my home county). The 101st served with distinction in the American Civil War.

• 1997 Local Winner and Second in the State of Illinois in the NSDAR's Christopher Columbus essay contest with my paper The Admiral and the Pilot Major
• 1997 Winner in the DCFS Essay Contest -Adoption, It's just another way of making a family-
• "A" rating and Blue Ribbon in the Cass/Morgan County 4-H Public Speaking Competition, May 21, 1997
• 1997 Second place in the local Friends of the Library Writer of the Year contest with my 8th grade research paper,"Bring on the Dragons", an exploration of the cultural significance of dragons.
• 1997 Second place in the Morgan County MADD Essay Contest, "My World, My Choice, No Alcohol"
• Letter of Award Receipient, READ Magazine's and The Family Channel's National Ditchdigger's Daughters Essay Contest.

I draw considerable criticism about my being schooled at home. To those people, I answer with my essay Home Schooling is Good for America

In many ways, we are what we do... The Bible says, "As a man thinkest, so is he." Draw your own conclusions about who I am.

I'm a confirmed member of my parish. I sing in my parish's choir.

I am active in Girl Scouting, having earned my Silver Award.
I'm working on my Gold Award, which is Girl Scouting's highest honor- an earned award equivalent to the Boy Scout Eagle Scout.
For my Gold Award project, I've been batting around the idea of an engineering contest for girls scouts (and other girls).

I take six hours of martial arts instruction each week. I've earned my provisional black belt. That's one level beneath a first degree black belt.

I'm also involved in 4-H . My 4-H club is called 4-H Jewels. I'm the President of the Club. Mostly, the kids in the club are also homeschoolers. My project this last spring was to learn HTML, so that I could write webpages. How am I doing?

I am a Cadet in Civil Air Patrol, having passed all of my exams for the grade of Sargeant. CAP is the civilian auxiliary of the US Air Force. Cadets-both male and female- learn aviation, moral leadership, self-discipline, and improve their physical fitness. I am a member of the Springfield Composite Squadron that meets at Capitol Airport in Springfield, Illinois. We meet together once a week for about three hours. Then we also do other activities.

As part of my activities with CAP, in 1998 I attended National Ground Search and Rescue School at the Air National Guard Training Center- Camp Atterbury- Indiana.

My squadron goes caving, camping, and works on drill team and other competitions both at the wing and national level. Additionally, cadets have the opportunity to learn to fly hot air balloons, gliders, and powered aircraft.
For more information about meeting times and places, drop me an e-mail.
Here are some websites that will give you some more information about CAP:
National HQ;
Great Lakes Region;
and Illinois Wing Home Page.(This last page has been down more than up lately.)

I hope to become involved in the Congressional Awards program

Academically, I enjoy Science, Math, Computers, and History. However, I could easily do without conjugating Latin verbs and declining adjectives.

Recreationally, I enjoy swimming, canoeing, camping, fishing, ice skating, and horseback riding.

I enjoy reading fiction, especially science fiction, mysteries, and adventure.

My favorite TV shows are Babylon 5, La Femme Nikita, and The Pretender.

My long range dreams are:

• to become an engineer, not the train type, but either mechanical, electrical, or aeronautical
• to create- and to hold the patents- for great things (which everyone will want)
• to be able to "retire" long enough to homeschool any of my future children- should God so bless me- to give them the opportunities to dream and do which my parents have given me by homeschooling
• to be rich... richer than Bill Gates...

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