Attaining the rank of valedictorian of the class of 2021 at Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C., meant more than an academic achievement to Taylor Crosland.

At the age of 12 in middle school, she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory condition impacting the digestive tract, and she had to undergo five surgeries.

“It was very challenging. Since I was in the hospital so much, it was difficult to keep up with academics. I learned to put time and effort into a goal that was important to me,” she said.

On the day when she learned she was the valedictorian for her class, she reflected on what that meant to her.

“To reach that ranking means everything to me regarding achieving my goals, because when I was sick, I had the goal of coming to high school and taking it by storm,” Crosland said.

At Archbishop Carroll from her freshman through senior years, she took honors classes. Her favorite class there, she said, was social studies.

“I love learning about history, not just U.S. history, but world history, to learn how this world came to be,” she said.

This fall, Crosland will be attending Georgetown University on a scholarship. She plans to study health sciences, with the ultimate goal of becoming a doctor.

That career goal, she said, was influenced by the medical care she has received.

“It was when I received my final surgery and able to do the things I wanted and eat the things I wanted, it was receiving that care, that feeling was amazing, and I wanted to give it to somebody else,” the Archbishop Carroll senior said.

Crosland expressed gratitude for the care that her doctors and nurses gave her.

“They did their job, and they got me to the healthy state I’m in right now,” she said.

Regarding which branch of medicine she’d like to pursue, Crosland said, “My dreams for the future would be to become a fertility doctor and open my own clinic. I just think it would be amazing to help people conceive who can’t conceive by themselves, to give them the gift of life.”

She attends New Southern Rock Baptist Church in Washington with her parents, Anthony and Latrina Crosland, and she has an older sister Destani who works in retail, and a twin brother, Terrell, who is a fellow member of the class of 2021 at Archbishop Carroll.

Asked about attending the high school with her twin brother these past four years, Crosland said, “I feel like it enhanced my experience here at Carroll, to have someone I could link with emotionally and mentally on a different level.”

A special experience that the twins shared was participating in Archbishop Carroll’s concert choir for all four of their years there. Crosland said she and her brother sometimes have a “twin day together, where we spend the entire day together just bonding and doing things.”

At Archbishop Carroll, Taylor Crosland participated in the Latin Dance Team that earned a first place in bachata dancing and a third place in salsa dancing at the World Latin Dance Cup in Colombia in 2019. She was also active in school productions, including performing in “Dreamgirls” when it was staged as the spring musical there.

“Doing Latin Dance and performing in front of people, I was able to grow in my confidence and self-esteem. Going into high school, I was very shy and introverted and not sure of myself. But Latin Dance and my other clubs helped me step into my character,” she said.

Crosland said she appreciated her friends at Archbishop Carroll, and how she could always come to her teachers for help with anything.

“Looking back at Carroll years later, I think I’ll really take away the relationships and sense of family I’ve gotten here,” she said.

Asked how the transition to virtual learning during the coronavirus shutdown impacted her, Crosland said, “Overall it was a really big adjustment going from school to home. As a student, it forced me to take more initiative with my work, establishing relationships with my teachers… I think my work ethic increased during the pandemic. Being at home and doing my projects and assignments, it got me in the habit of making sure everything I turned in was in the best condition. It got me in a place to improve my communication skills.”

As her May 27 graduation at Archbishop Carroll approached, Crosland said, “For me personally, I feel like the moment will be bittersweet. Of course I’m excited to graduate and move on to the next phase of my life, but I’m also going to be a little sad to see everyone part ways, and I’ll miss the experiences I’ve had here.”

But her graduation day at Archbishop Carroll will mark another “twin day” for Taylor Crosland and her brother and fellow graduating senior Terrell. “It will be pretty exciting to share this with my twin,” she said.