Kairi Bruck – Class of 2026

Planned Marine Biology or Biopsychology major

Driven by curiosity, Kairi (Ky-ree) has sought to understand the world, carrying a notebook as a child to record observations, exploring museums, and conducting “research” long before school required it. Now a high-achieving high school student ranked in the top 2% of her class and over 700 hours of service, she channels that same passion into leadership and learning. She is President of her school’s FIRST robotics team, a Coca-Cola Scholars Semifinalist, an AP Scholar with Honor and a National Rural and Small Town Recognition Awardee from the College Board, Student Hero Awardee from the Texas State Board of Education, a member of the National Honor Society, and a four-year varsity cross-country and track runner. She has participated in research and data collection on the impact of anthropogenic noise on dolphin communication in Galveston Bay through Stephen F Austin State University. Kairi is the Founder of ADHDed Value, an organization dedicated to amplifying the voices of students with ADHD while providing teachers and parents with resources to support twice-exceptional students. She has shared this information through national conference presentations. She is also the Founder of FlukeFluent, which provides information on cetaceans. In all capacities, Kairi brings energy, curiosity, and commitment. She plans to pursue marine biology and/or biopsychology at university, where she can ultimately combine all her passions into the welfare and conservation of marine mammals.

General Information

High School: Hudson High School

Class: 2026

GPA and Rank: 5.388, 4/179

Height: 5’3

Cross Country: 4 year varsity – @kairibruck_running

Track: 800m, 1600m, and 3200m (4 year varsity)

Experience:

  • Marine Mammal Intern, Dolphin Quest Bermuda, Summer 2025
  • Attendee, 2025 IMATA Conference (International Marine Animal Trainers Association)
  • Beluga and dolphin shadowing, Georgia Aquarium, Summer 2024
  • High School Research Assistant, Stephen F Austin State University, Aquatic Biology, Department of Biology

Service and Leadership:

  • Over 700 hours of service
  • FIRST Robotics Team 4295, President
  • ADHDed Value, Founder – @adhded_value
  • FlukeFluent, Founder – @flukefluent
  • SFASU Aquatic Biology, common bottlenose dolphin and Ukrainian mouse high school research assistant
  • National Honor Society (NHS) Member
  • Advanced Physics tutor

Honors and Awards:

Activities

Cross Country and Track

4-year varsity cross country and track runner (@kairirbruck_running). I also coached youth cross and track, volunteering over 40 hours. The program ended in May 2024.

XC:

2 mile: 13:00.00; 3200m: 13:04.20; 2400m: 9:45.00
– 2022 Newcomer of the Year; 4th Place Individual District; Team District Champions; Regional Qualifier; State Meet Qualifier
– 2023 MVP of the week
– 2024 October Student-Athlete; District – Team 1st and 6th Individually; Regional Qualifier; State Meet Qualifier
– 2025 District – Team 1st and 10th Individually; Regional Qualifier

Track:

800m: 2:35 3200m: 12:10 1600m: 5:43
– 2023 Newcomer of the Year; 3rd Place Individual District – 3200m and 1600m; 5th Place Individual Area – 3200m; 5th Place Area Meet – 3200; Team Area Champions
– 2024 3rd Place Individual District – 3200m; Area Meet Qualifier; 5th Place Individual 1600m; 7th Place Individual 800m
– 2025 District 4th place individual 3200m; Team 2nd Place District; Area Meet Qualifier

ADHDed Value

Founder of ADHDed Value (@adhded_value). As the founder of ADHDed Value, Kairi has spoken at national conferences and provided materials to teachers and teacher education professors at local universities. Her work with ADHDed Value earned her the Student Hero Award from the Texas State Board of Education.

ADHDed Value has two primary objectives. 1) Assist individuals with ADHD and their families develop the structure and supports that work best for each person. 2) Provide hope that dreams are attainable. We accomplish this through providing examples of structures and supports for those with ADHD, describing ways families have successfully supported their loved ones with ADHD, offering speaking engagements and workshops, profiling successful individuals thriving with ADHD, explaining the science behind ADHD, and reviewing products that may help with ADHD symptoms.

Volunteered over 300 hours 

FIRST Robotics – Team 4295

President and Head of Pit Crew. An average of 277 hours annually.

FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) is a high school robotics tournament where teams design, build, and program an industrial-sized robot based on a new mission each year, requiring specific tasks. Involved for 4 years. Instituted a service project program for the team. Previously served as the Social Media Manager (2022-2024). Helped secure new sponsors and increased the team’s social media following by 200%. Ranked 98th in the FIRST in Texas (FIT) League. Ranked 8th in the District Tournament (2023) and 28th in the 2024 District Tournament. Present to elementary and middle school students to increase interest in STEM in rural East Texas. Devoted over 1,000 hours over 4 years.

Conducting field-based dolphin research in Galveston Bay with Stephen F Austin State University

Animal Welfare and Conservation

Marine Mammals

Shadowed with the Bottlenose Dolphin Husbandry and Beluga Husbandry teams at Georgia Aquarium (2024). Marine Mammal Training Internship with DolphinQuest Bermuda (2025), accumulating over 185 hours of experience.

Participated as part of a research team, including data collection and whistle analysis, on anthropogenic ocean noise on dolphin communication in Galveston Bay. Research conducted through Stephen F Austin State University’s Aquatic Biology program within the Department of Biology. Learned data collection protocol, boatsmanship, acoustic analysis, and animal behavior.

Ukrainian Mice

Assisted Stephen F. Austin State University with the care and husbandry of specialized burrowing mice for research on kinship and cognition. Assisted with maintaining lab cleanliness in compliance with IACUC standards.

FlukeFluent

Founder – @flukefluent

FlukeFluent provides education and resources on whales and dolphins for the public and school-aged children in an easy-to-understand way. Attended the 2025 IMATA conference to gain more knowledge on state-of-the-art research and welfare best practices.

National Honor Society (NHS)

Inducted into the Pine Tree Chapter of NHS in 2024. The National Honor Society empowers and equips your students with the knowledge and skills to be transformative leaders in your school, community, and beyond.

I want to combine my love of biology, psychology, animal behavior, robotics, and education to further the conservation and welfare of cetaceans and marine mammals.